Mystify Mikan
by mysticlife-fh
Summary: Mikan Sakura has avoided AA for 10 years!Yet, one day she arrived at the entrance WILLINGLY! What makes this AA's most wanted to change her mind? It's for me to know and for Natsume to find out.. This is my 1st fanfic ever! mXn CH. 15'S UP GOMEINE...!
1. Prologue

Mikan Sakura created a history by successfully avoiding Alice Academy for 10 years.  
Then, one day she appeared at the school entrance willingly. What makes this AA's most wanted change her mind?  
That's for me to know and for Natsume to find out…

_**Mysticlife-fh : Do I really have to say that?**_

_**Mr. Narumi : Yes, dear. I'm afraid so…**_

_**Mysticlife-fh : All right, all right! Hey, readers.. This is my first ever fanfiction. So, feel free to**_

_** read! And, don't forget to tell me what you think about it !!!**_

_**Mr. Narumi : That's not what I told you to do…**_

_**Mysticlife-fh : It's not necessary ! Everyone knows I'm not the owner of Alice Academy!!!**_

_**Mr. Narumi : Thanx, dear…  
**_

* * *

"**Kriiiinnnnnnggggggg!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!**"

Buzzes were still heard all across the classroom despite the fact that recess is over 5 minutes ago.

"All right, guys. Settle down!"

Upon hearing the voice of Mr. Narumi, the students started to return to their respective seats.

"OK, for our history lesson. We've been going through World Wars, United Organization and most

of the countries in Asia. I was thinking of… Natsume! Where are you going?"

Everyone who was starting to feel drowsy suddenly turned their attention to a handsome, raven-haired boy.  
He was making his way out of the class, ignoring his teacher's summon.

"Scared, Natsume?"

Mr. Narumi's remark was simple, yet causing a huge impact on Natsume, who is famous for his bravery.  
He stopped abruptly, a meter away from the door. Realising that his method is effective, Mr. Narumi continued.

"As I said just now, I was thinking of something different today. Something that'll make you feel impress.

I'm going to tell you about…"

The class went silent as everyone was holding their breath, waiting in suspense.

"…the history of Alice Academy!" he said jubilantly.

"Aaarghh!!!!" Nearly half of the class fall of their seats. Some of them shake their heads disapprovely.

"And why the hell would I feel terrified of the stupid history??" The temperature of the class was getting hot.

Mr. Narumi smiled before answering, "Because Natsume, this person I am going to tell you about has defeated you."

The answer is sufficient enough to catch the attention of every single student in the class.

"As all of you are aware of, Natsume Hyuuga has managed to escape from Alice Academy for such a long time.  
7 years! The academy took 7 years to finally admit him here. I must say, that's impressive!"

Every girl in the class started to look at him in admiral and some even clapped to show their support to him.

"What's your point, Naru?" Natsume has started to lose his patience.

"Right. It takes a great deal for the academy to find you. However, it takes a lot more efforts to  
search the whereabouts of this particular person."

"How many years does that person cost?" Yuu Tobita, the class president voiced out his curiousity.

"For now, it's approximately 10 years",

The class gasped. They exchanged looks with each other.

"Wait a minute! What do you mean by 'for now'?"

"Oh, that's excellent, Hotaru-chan! You've spotted the main problem here", exclaimed Mr. Narumi.  
"Currently, this person, whose age is the same as yours, is still being searched. So, we won't know  
how many years more does it take to find this runaway. Maybe a year or two, or maybe it will cost a  
lifetime. I guess we'll just have to wait".

The students who started to find the lesson interesting urged Mr. Narumi to continue with his story.  
However, he was saved by the bell. Nearly everyone grumbled in protest. But Mr. Narumi was more  
than happy to go. He was worried that he might tell them more than they need to know.  
What's with Kokoroyomi's alice of mind-reading, he had to strain himself from thinking of the person's name  
through his entire lesson.

As he was walking along the alleyway, he mumbled quietly,

"We'll wait for you…"

"… Mikan Sakura"

At the precise time, thousand of miles away from the Alice Academy…

"Acchoooooo!!!!!!" a 14-year old girl sneezed suddenly.

"Catch a cold, Mikan?" asked an extremely handsome boy who was sitting beside her.

"Nah, Leo. Someone must've been talking about me"

* * *

_**Mysticlife-fh : How was it? Just review, okay!!! Next episode we'll have more on Mikan !!!**_

_**Mikan : Really? Oh, guys! Don't forget to read! Please…………….. **_

_**Mysticlife-fh : Ooh... you want to know who's Leo is? Keep reading!!  
**_


	2. The arrival

* * *

_**Mikan : You're here! Thank you, thank you! I love you all !!!!!**_

_**Mysticlife-fh : Enough of it, Mikan. You've changed, remember!**_

_**Mikan : Oh ya! I forgot. This cruel writer has made me a little different from normal GA.**_

_** I've changed in terms of-**_

_**Mysticlife-fh : Shut your mouth, Mikan! Just let them read peacefully and detect your **_

_** new characteristic by themselves…**_

* * *

_**Chapter 1 The arrival**_

It was a bright, sunny day. A black car suddenly stopped in front of the entrance. Two teenagers stepped out of the car. The brunette girl looked up at the enormous gate in front of her. There is a huge sign at the entrance : 

ALICE ACADEMY

The brown-haired boy sighed. "Remind me again, why am I here?"

The young girl smirked before answering, "You lose the deal, remember? So, you've to follow me".

"But, here? You must be out of your mind!"

"Tsk, who cares??"

Meanwhile, at the junior high building, Mr. Narumi was having lesson. He was teaching the students about fashion.

'_Useless Naru, he better be worried more about the way he dressed_' thought Natsume.

He was starting to read manga when the substitute teacher came in. He whispered something to Mr. Narumi that made him shocked. Then, without saying anything, Mr. Narumi left the class hurriedly leaving the substitute teacher behind. Afraid of being bullied by the bored students, he ran away after telling them to study by themselves.

Everyone was wondering what was happening when they heard someone gasped. It was the boy with remote-hearing alice. He told the class about the conversation he heard between Mr. Narumi and Mr. Jinno at the office.

"The person Mr. Narumi told us before; the runaway… has arrived here."

"What? He's been caught?" half of the class shouted.

"No, the person came willingly. And… it is not 'he', it is 'she'."

"WHAT?!?!?!???"

* * *

"Everyone, let me introduce our new transfer student"

The students were holding their breath, waiting for the runaway to come in. A young brunette girl entered. She possesses a bright, hazel eyes and fair complexion.

She smiled cheerfully before saying, "Hello, I'm Mikan Sakura, 14 years old".

Nearly everyone were stunned. They never expect the runaway is a girl. What's more, she is a very beautiful girl. Mikan felt awkward being in this situation. Lots of them stared at her as though she is a ghost. There are even a few of the boys who are drooling. But, she couldn't help noticing a pair of eyes belongs to a boy at the back of the class, unusually crimson eyes. He was glaring at her with his cold eyes as though she was his deadliest enemy.

"All right, mikan-chan. Let me see… is it okay with you to sit at the back of the class? Everywhere else is full."

Mikan looked at the place where Mr. Narumi has shown her. It was next to the crimson-eyed boy.

"I guess I've no other choice, do I?"

She thanked Mr. Narumi before making her way to her seat, trying hard to ignore the stares from her classmates. When the teacher was gone, Mikan was wondering why they were acting all weird at her. It was as though they knew her. But, how?

She was thinking hard when someone poked her hands. It was a blonde boy. He was wearing a spectacle.

"Sakura-chan… I'm Yuu Tobita, the class president". In his hesitation, he managed to suppress a smile.

'_Now, that's normal_' Mikan thought while replying his smile.

Before the conversation could go any further, she was disturbed by a loud voice.

"**NO**! I can't take it anymore! Hey, you!" a green-haired girl was walking, no, stomping. She looked really angry. And, she was coming towards Mikan. Obviously, by now, everyone's attention was on both of them. Yuu started to panic. However, Mikan remain to be calm.

"Pleased to meet you…" Mikan started, but she was stopped abruptly by the angry girl.

"But, I'm not pleased at all!" she snarled.

Mikan, still smiling said, "Oh, and... why is that?"

"Why do you choose this place?" she asked roughly, referring to Mikan's seat.

"Seems like you don't remember it's Mr. Narumi who gave me this seat. Anyway, what is it to you?"

"I warn you, Natsume-"

"Who's Natsume?" Mikan asked in a calm tone.

Her question, if possible, caused the green-haired girl to become ten times angrier than before.

The class has become, surprisingly quiet.

"You fool! Natsume Hyuuga is the one beside you. He's the bravest and the most handsome-"

"So?" snarled Mikan who was getting bored with the girl's explanation. She didn't even bother to look at the person sitting beside her.

Trying hard to keep her temper, the girl continued, "I warn you, don't you dare to touch him!"

Instead of being angry, Mikan giggled. "I've my own reason of coming here, and I assure you none of them concerning him."

The angry girl smirked triumphantly before saying, "Good! Because, he's mine-"

"It's not really nice to say that, you know." Mikan said quietly. "We don't possess anyone, they are no one's". She was no longer smiling.

The green-haired girl has clearly reached her limit.

"Shouda-san!" Yuu shouted as the girl was about to attack Mikan.

"Oit!"

The girl stopped upon hearing Natsume Hyuuga's voice. He was glaring at Mikan. Everyone were becoming more interested in watching the scene.

"What's your alice?" He asked rudely.

'_What the hell was he thinking? I've never seen anyone as rude as him. You're really lucky I'm in a good mood today_' she thought before turned to face him, smiling.

"That's for me to know, and for you to find out." She said soft, but sternly.

Everyone was shocked to hear her. No one was brave enough to talk like that to Natsume before.

The surrounding was getting to heat up.

"How dare you! Sooner or later we'll know!" the Shouda girl shrieked.

"Not from me, for sure." Mikan said simply. Her eyes were wandering to all her classmates.

"Really? I bet in two minutes I'll know."

This deal has attracted Mikan whose eyes are now on the confident girl.

"Two minutes? You really underestimate me, girl. Why not two weeks? Although I'm sure you're still going to lose." Mikan smirked

'_Oh, I love bets_'

"Koko!" Shouda called.

Mikan looked at the blonde-haired boy. His face was expressionless. He was looking at her attentively. Then, it hit her.

"Mind-reading alice, is it? Interesting, let's see then", she smiled while watching him working hard to read her mind.

Five minutes later…

Nothing changed.

Everyone started to wonder what happened to the mind-reader. Koko was sweating. He must have overused his alice. Meanwhile, Sumire Shouda's confidence started to decrease through time. Seeing this, Mikan decided to break the silence. She stood up and walked towards Shouda.

"I've told you so, Permy. Well then, we'll make it a two-weeks bet. The loser will have to follow whatever the winner asked her to do. You may involve as many friends as you wish, but neither of the teachers should know about this. Is that okay?" she said, smiling.

Sumire just looked at her, resisting the urge to punch her face.

"I assume that's a deal." Mikan smiled. "Good luck then!" She said before leaving her place.

She made her way to front of the class, where two girls were sitting. She has noticed them before, during her argument with Sumire. Unlike everyone at the class who just stared at her, they wore a concerned expression when Sumire was trying to hurt her. Just like Yuu's. She was grateful to know, at least, there's someone who cares about her here.

"Hello! I'm Mikan Sakura", she greeted happily.

At first, the girls were stunned. Then, they smiled at her before replying

"Hi, I'm Anna. She's Nonoko".

Feeling relieved that they answered her, Mikan continued.

"Oh, great! Listen, can you guys help me? I know nothing here apart from this class. So, if you don't mind, could you show me around? I mean, if you're not busy…"

The girls exchanged glances. Without much thought, they nodded.

Mikan smiled triumphantly, ignoring the stares from the rest of the class. They were on their way out when Mikan stopped suddenly.

"Coming, Yuu?"

As though being awaken from a long dream, Yuu looked around before setting his eyes on Mikan.

"Err… Yah. The class is over, after all."

The four of them went out of the class. The class remained silent, too dumfounded to talk. Koko who was still confused of previous incident tried to check the condition of his alice.

'_Yup, it's working_!' he thought while looking around the class.

Then, something caught him. He watched the famous Hyuuga whose face being covered with a manga. Being able to read his mind has proven that the top student wasn't really sleeping.

'_To be able to make friends after all those havoc she caused, __that stupid girl is something._'

* * *

_**Mikan : So, have you noticed it? My stupidness is gone!!! **_

_**Natsume : Are you blind? I've just called you stupid in my mind!**_

_**Mysticlife-fh : Well, seems like Mikan's idiot character is almost vanished. But, I promise **_

_** you her cheerfulness will always be there… **_

_**Mikan : And, do review, will you??? That evil writer will stop if she don't receive more than 15 reviews...  
**_

_**  
**_


	3. Mikan's plan

Chapter 2 Mikan's Plan

* * *

_**Mysticlife-fh : Sorry guys! I've been busy studying for the exam!!! And, don't worry. That 15 reviews is just an excuse   
**_ **_for me to have more time to prepare. I'll update as soon as I can, ok: )_**

**_Mikan : Leo will be revealed in this chapter!!! _**

**_Leo : Wait for my appearance, ya!!!  
_**

* * *

****

** Chapter 2 Mikan's Plan**

"This, Mikan, is our dormitories." Anna pointed to a nice, huge building. 

Mikan Sakura looked at the building with admiration. They have been touring the school area for almost two hours. While on their journey, Yuu has informed her all about the school; rabbits, star-ranking, teachers, and their classmates.

'_This academy, is undoubtedly the best compared to my previous schools_'

She was walking freely at the ground examining the 2-storey building when she noticed something. Situated at the highest spot of the building, there is…

"…an attic" Mikan said quietly, but loud enough for Nonoko to hear.

"Oh, you don't want to go there, Mikan."

"Why, Nonoko?" Mikan asked curiously.

"It's very dusty in there. Not to mention, small"

Mikan's eyes gleamed. "So, there's no one who live there?"

"Of course not!" Yuu added. "The building itself is enough to support the students. Even if you are a single star you'll get a way, better room than the attic".

They started to walk away for dinner, along with Mikan who was thinking hard of something.

* * *

Mikan woke up early this morning. It was her 2nd day here. She decided to take a walk around the academy. Then, she stopped at the sight of the attic. She was focusing hard in observing the building that she didn't realize where was she going. And, sure enough…

"Ouch !!" She accidentally bumped with someone. The impact was so huge that she almost loses her balance. Luckily, a hand caught her from landing on the grass.

"Thank-" She opened her eyes to thank her saviour but became speechless when she saw Natsume.

"Better use your eyes properly, idiot!" he said before leaving her.

At the heard of his remarks, Mikan smiled, feeling stupid

'_And I thought the bad rumours on him aren't true, how silly of me_.'

Mikan intended to maintain a low-profile attitude all through her lesson. She was too tired of all those stares and glares. Unfortunately, with the fact that she is a new student, the chances for her not being noticed is nearly zero. The first thing every teachers did when they entered the class was to call her name, either asking her to introduce herself or testing her abilities. By the end of the day, almost all of them took a great liking at her, what's with her intelligence in solving the questions given easily. However, Mr. Jinno was not one of them.

It was the last lesson of the day. Before the class started, Yuu came to Mikan to explain to her about Mr. Jinno.

"And, don't forget, Mikan. Mr. Jinno is the one who's supposed to grant you your star-rank."

Mikan who nearly dozed off due to Yuu's long talk jerked awake suddenly at the heard of the words 'star-rank'.

"So, he has the power to decide which star that I deserved?"

"Yes, Mikan". Yuu replied, oblivious to Mikan's reaction who was smiling thoughtfully.

Natsume, however, who did not have the mood to skip class, has sensed Mikan's sudden change. She was now thinking hard, as though planning for something.

Few minutes later, Mr. Jinno came in. As expected, he called upon Mikan to answer the equation on the board. Natsume shared the same thoughts with the students in the class.

'_That was a piece of cake. It shouldn't be a problem for that useless girl_'

Mikan was walking towards the board when she stopped for a moment at Sumire Shouda's place. She threw something small to Sumire and smirked before continued walking.

Everyone's eyes were on Mikan, apparently in deep concentration to solve the question and to Sumire, who was presently reading something. Aura of anger was starting to arise around her.

Mikan took such a long time to answer even a simple question. And, when she was done, she disappointed Mr. Jinno even more. All her answers were wrong. Some of the students were surprised.

'_She is below expectation. Why did the other teachers recommend her anyway_?'

Mr. Jinno thought before asking Mikan to return to her seat. While on her way, Mikan, once again smiled evilly at Sumire. Clearly, Shouda was struggling to control her anger. And, Mikan's smirk was her last straw.

Mr. Jinno was teaching about algebra when suddenly he heard someone's voice

"Oh, I had enough! Stop this stupid class now! You, Jin-jin! Get out of the class with the smelly frog of yours!"

Mr. Jinno who was facing the board was furious. He decided to find the source of his irritation. He turned around. That was such a wrong move. The second he placed his eyes on the students…

"SPLASH!!!"

His eyesight was totally blocked with a thick blob of ink that was all over his face. But, that didn't stop him from listening to the familiar voice again.

"Hahahaha! Idiot Jin-jin… You deserved it. Do you think you're that powerful, ha?"

Then, he realized it. It's her voice! He was sure of it. It must be her! Her next words confirmed his suspicion.

"That's a lesson for you. Don't you dare mess with Mikan Sakura".

Half of the class gasped. They turned their head to look at Mikan. She was looking at Mr. Jinno, both her hands were placed under her chin. Her face was expressionless. But, she wasn't speaking at all. This left them dumbfounded.

However, Natsume who possessed an IQ beyond anyone's reach saw Sumire who was grinning madly. Obviously, she was behind the entire scene.

'Oh, I see. The idiot girl didn't open her mouth at all. So, Shouda must have asked the girl with the alice of voice copying to speak up pretending to be her. And, that ink… Well, Mochu would be able to levitate it easily. But, why is the idiot so calm? Unless…' Natsume smirked.

Mr. Jinno who had finished cleaning his face summoned Mikan immediately. His face was red, full of anger. Then he spoke through his gritted teeth

"You!" he snarled. "You are nothing but a useless, obnoxious girl. All of the teachers are wrong about you! How dare-"

"S-s-sir… It w-w-wasn't Mi-", Yuu tried to defend Mikan, but became mute when he received the glare of death from Mr. Jinno.

Mikan who didn't bother to explain anything just looked at the floor, her face hidden.

"Clearly, you've helped me a lot in deciding your star-rank, Miss Sakura."

"Oh, no!" Koko muttered.

"You, filthy child, don't even deserve a three-star, needless to say special one. In fact, you're far worse than a one-star. The only rank that suited you is…"

Koko's eyes were wide in terror.

"…a NO-STAR!!"

Everyone's jaws dropped upon hearing Mr. Jinno's words. Meanwhile, Sumire was fighting her own battle to stop laughing at Mikan. If there's something that'll make the situation became more shocking was Mikan's expression. She neither spoke nor cried. Instead, she was still facing the floor, her blonde, sleek hair covering her pretty face.

All of her classmates were holding their breath, waiting for Mikan's reaction.

Mikan then sighed softly, before looking at Mr. Jinno straight in the eye. Mr. Jinno was taken aback by her expressionless face.

"Thank you, sir" was her last words before she started to walk across the class to her respective seat, opened her book and started to read as though nothing happened. When the bell rang, Mr. Jinno left the class leaving the students to gossip about the recent event.

Meanwhile, Sumire Shouda who was waiting for this precious moment all her life went to Mikan. She laughed maniacally in front of her, pressing her tummy. When Mikan showed no reaction at all, she decided to tease her.

"How was it, Miss Perfect? Do I really to repeat the same thing again and again??? For the last time, don't you dare to mess with me!!!" she smiled triumphantly.

She shoved a small, crumpled parchment on Mikan's table.

"You gave me this bloody letter to make me angry in Jin-jin's lesson, so that I'll be punished. Do you think I am that stupid? How are you feeling now when your plan backfired???"

Mikan still ignored her; her eyes were on the book she was reading. Sumire started to feel angry. She grabbed the book roughly to move Mikan's attention from it. Mikan had no choice but to look at her, who was now smirking. Mikan stood up suddenly.

"Well done, Permy!" she said coolly.

Sumire was totally flabbergasted. Before she was able to reply anything, Mikan was out of the class. But not before Natsume saw a small smile formed by her lips.

After Sumire stomped away, Natsume noticed the letter on Mikan's table.

'This must be the small thing the idiot threw to Permy'

Without hesitation, he took the parchment and read it. For a while, Natsume was startled. Then, he smirked and thrust the paper into his pocket.

* * *

At night…

"Miss Sakura, I'm the matron here. I'm supposed to bring you to your room."

Mikan's star-rank has been decided. Therefore, she has to move to her respective room. However, the robotic matron was having problem in finding the room that suited her no-star title. They've been walking around the dormitories for 30 minutes. When they've reached the same corridor for the 10th time, Mikan started to get bored. She rolled her eyes before started to talk…

"Matron, what's up?"

"Owh… I'm sorry. It's just that I've never experienced a no-star student before. Most of the rooms are for the one-star and above. But, where to put you…"

Mikan smiled, "Well, anywhere is fine, as long as not the dusty attic".

The matron stopped suddenly that Mikan almost bumped into her. Although she is a robot, she was so happy that she managed to suppress a smile.

"Here's your room, Miss Sakura" the robot said joyfully, showing her the attic.

Mikan wandered around the small room, observing the thick dust formed on the floor.

"At least, Nonoko wasn't lying" she said.

After the matron left, she started to do the cleaning. She has just finished mopping the floor when Yuu, Anna and Nonoko came. All of them were wearing a worried look.

"Mikan, we've heard." Yuu said softly.

"We know you're innocent, Mikan." Nonoko's eyes were watery.

"How can we help you??" Anna said while looking around the attic.

At the hearing of her friend's concerned voice, Mikan smiled.

"It's ok, guys! I'm fine-"

"How can you be fine in this condition…" snapped Anna, she was crying.

Mikan was started to fell guilty when she saw her friend's expression. She didn't know what to say to convince them.

'Knock! Knock!'

Yuu opened the door revealing a handsome, brown-haired boy.

Anna and Nonoko's jaws dropped upon seeing him. They never see him before…

"Oh, Leo!" Mikan smiled.

Mikan's new friends looked at her, waiting for her explanation.

Understood of their inquiring look, Mikan started,

"Everyone, this is my friend, my best friend to be exact; Leo Kusanagi. We came together here. He's the same age as us, but he's in the other class."

"Oh, you're the new 3-star student!" exclaimed Anna.

"Leo, these are Anna, Nonoko and Yuu, my new friends" Mikan continued.

"Hi there!" he greeted them happily.

Realising that both of them need some privacy, Yuu gave excuses to go for supper. Anna and Nonoko followed him after assuring Mikan that everything's going to be fine soon.

When they left, Mikan and Leo exchanged smiles. Without saying anything, Leo helped Mikan in cleaning her attic. Seeing this, Mikan proceed with her own work. This continued for a couple of hours. When they were done, both of them landed on the bed, extremely exhausted.

Leo broke the silence

"That's a very good idea you've came up with. I must admit, it's impressive!"

Mikan smiled proudly, "Look who you are talking to…"

"Are you that sick with wealthy life, till you're willing to live here?"

"To tell you the truth, yup! I'm totally bored with big rooms, glamour clothes and expensive foods. Sometimes, experiencing to get things the hard way is quite enjoyable."

"You should've told me, you know…" there's feeling of regret in Leo's voice. "If I realized what're you doing a little bit earlier, I –"

"You'll what?" Mikan interrupted, now facing Leo. "You'll make Jin-jin angry and landed as a no-star as well?"

Leo became speechless.

"Oh, c'mon Leo! I thought you fancy a glamour life??? And besides, if I get sick with my poverty here, whose room do you think I'll turn to?" she raised one of her eye-brow.

Leo sighed and smiled, "I felt pity for your friends, though. They cried for you."

Mikan's heart was full of guilty.

"Yah… I felt bad as well. But, don't worry. I'll fix with them tomorrow."

Then, she stood up suddenly.

"Enough about me, I thought I've to cope with your sad face as well when you entered!!"

Her words made him laughed loudly.

"How thick are you, Mikan? I've known you too well to fall for your plan!"

* * *

_**Mikan : See! Leo's my best friend!!! **_

_**Leo : Btw, what did you wrote to Permy, Mikan??**_

_**Mikan : Oh, that! Natsume will tell us on the next chapter...**_

_**Mysticlife-fh : Tell me what you think!!! **_


	4. Who is Mikan Sakura?

* * *

_**Mysticlife-fh : Thanks for keep reading, guys!!!**_

_**Hotaru : …… my appearance….. read on ….**_

_**Mikan : Watch out for more cool sides of me!!!  
**_

* * *

**Who is Mikan Sakura???**

****

For the next few days, Mikan Sakura and Leo Kusanagi has become the centre of attention. Mikan was the first ever no-star while Leo is the fastest ever to gain the three-star rank.

As a no-star, Mikan's life was like…

**HELL**

Everyday, she had to do social works; cleaning the class, washing plates and sweeping the corridors. And, if that's not enough, she had to cope with Sumire Shouda's eerie laughs whenever she bumped into her. Despite all the hardships Mikan had to face, she still enjoyed her life to the fullest. It's because she had never experienced doing all the cores before.

It was lunch time and she had just finished her cleaning work. Her tiredness overcame her needs of filling her stomach. Therefore, she decided to take a break at the forest. She found a nice spot; a sakura tree. Feeling too exhausted to think anything, she leaned on the tree. The nice breeze and calm wind helped her in relaxing her mind. Few seconds later, she fell asleep…

_dream starts_

"_Look, she's the one I've told you about"_

"_Yeah, she's the girl with no mom and dad!"_

"_Can you imagine? Abandoned by our own family??"_

"_Oh my! No one loves her!!"  
_

_dream ends_

"No… no... stop it… stop... SHUT UP!!!"

Mikan shouted.

Her eyes jerked open suddenly. She was sweating. Her heart was thumping badly. She held her chest tightly in order to calm herself, but failed. It took her several minutes to relax herself.

"Whose mouth are you shutting up, no-star?"

Mikan's heart almost skipped a beat when she heard a familiar voice. Her eyes moved almost to everywhere before she found the source of the voice, above her.

It was Natsume…

He was lying on one of the thick branches of the same sakura tree she was leaning on. There was a manga on his lap.

"What are you doing here?" she started, returning to her cool form.

"I should asked you that question, idiot!" he snarled back.

"Well, it is clear, isn't it? I was resting!"

Natsume smirked.

"I was sleeping peacefully here before being awaken by your shriek, or shall I say, your _method of resting" _he replied, emphasizing on the last three words.

Mikan who had no mood to argue with him rolled her eyes in irritation before started to walk away. After all, recess is almost over.

"Why you did that?" he asked.

She stopped, her back facing Natsume.

"Did what?" she questioned, feeling a little bit confused.

"All of your stupid acting in Jinno's class…"

Mikan startled for a while. Then, she turned to face Natsume who was now on the ground. His left hand was held high, showing the same paper she gave to Sumire. From there, she can see her own neat, cursive handwriting.

_Sorry Permy, I touched Natsume…_

He released the small parchment, and slowly, it burned down. All that's left is the ashes on the ground.

Seeing this, she smiled. "It's a fact, isn't it? You hold my hand to stop me from falling that day."

"If you're really dying for a no-star title, why don't you do it yourself?" Natsume asked.

"Or, are you worried you're incapable of doing it?"

"Of course I'm capable of doing it." She snapped. "Although I don't think that it's going to be as good as Permy's.

No-star rank is something that's rare. And to get it, only someone who is familiar enough with Jinno would be able

to attack him so badly and caused him to lose his judgement. Besides, Permy won't have any problems at all

because no one knew it was her", she said with a small smile.

'_She really thought about this carefully. Every aspect…' _thought Natsume

From afar, they heard the bell rang. Lunch time is over. Mikan sighed deeply.

"You're undeniably a genius, just like what the rumours said".

She turned away to return to the class.

"But... to know exactly the reason for someone's action, it needs more than a brain." She said quietly.

In no time, she disappeared from sight, leaving Natsume thinking of her last words.

* * *

Mikan returned to her class. Natsume's seat was still vacant, allowing her to get a clear view of Ruka Nogi, Natsume's best friend.

"Hello, Ruka!" she greeted cheerfully.

Ruka who was startled of Mikan's sudden greeting replied her with a nod hesitantly. She noticed him looking worriedly at Natsume's spot. Realising this, Mikan told him where Natsume was. He was surprised at first, but muttered 'thanks' before leaving the class.

Sure enough, Sumire with her cat-dog alice managed to sense this and glared at Mikan. Mikan who enjoyed seeing this smiled broadly at Sumire, causing her to slam her hands on the table angrily.

Mikan was struggling to stop herself from laughing when she realized someone was watching her. She tried to locate the person and saw Mochu. He was staring at her. When he noticed Mikan was looking at him back, he turned away quickly. Mikan found it strange.

* * *

It has been a week since Mikan's arrival. It was a sunny Sunday. Natsume and Ruka were resting near the lake.

Then, Ruka brought out the topic about Mikan Sakura.

"Natsume, what do you think of Sakura? She doesn't really resemble someone who has been succeeded in avoiding the academy for 10 years…"

Natsume showed no sign of answering him. Yet, Ruka knew he was listening.

"I wonder how she managed to escape. But, maybe the story was just a fiction."

"There's no point debating with your own self, Ruka." Natsume said quietly.

"If you want to get all the answers, you should know where to look".

Ruka looked at Natsume, who was now watching the sky. He didn't understand.

'_What does he mean with 'where to look'?_

His eyes wandered around aimlessly, thinking hard of Natsume's words. That's when he spotted Imai Hotaru. She was walking near the lake. Then, it hit him. Realizing Natsume's intention, he asked his bunny to call Hotaru.

Few seconds later, Hotaru came with Ruka's rabbit hanging helplessly, its hands were holding to Hotaru's jeans. Clearly, Hotaru made no effort to remove it from her trousers. Seeing this, Ruka quickly grabbed his bunny and glared at Hotaru.

"About time…" Hotaru said; her eyes were glinting with the money symbol $$$.

Ruka who was startled at first recovered his shockness few seconds later, reminding himself that he was dealing with Imai Hotaru, a genius. Surely, she will know what they want from her.

She opened her bag and took out a duck robot. She gave it to Ruka. Ruka just stared at it, expecting it to pop out its eyes or make any sounds. But nothing happened. Ruka gave Hotaru a 'What-da-hell-is-this?' look.

Hotaru rolled her eyes but remain silent.

Noticing this, Natsume finally spoke,

"Knowing Imai, you don't expect it to be functional without money, do you, Ruka?"

Ruka smiled for his silliness and inserted a 50 rabbits into the small opening from the duck's mouth. Slowly, the mouth opened a little bit. Ruka looked at Natsume to assure that they both shared the same thought.

"Well, you know what to do". Hotaru gave a weird smile.

Ruka sighed. He placed another 50 rabbits into the mouth, and another 50 rabbits, and another….

Five minutes later…

By the time the duck's mouth reached its maximum opening, Ruka had lost about 500 rabbits. He sweated badly, cursing Hotaru for being such a money-lover. Suddenly, the duck quacked loudly and produced a flash of binding light.

"Aaarrghhh…"

Ruka was taken aback while Natsume was eyeing it suspiciously. Ruka shut his eyes as the beam was blinding him. Then, someone nudged him. He opened his eyes revealing Natsume who was looking intently at something. He followed his direction and his jaw dropped.

In front of them, there was a huge virtual-reality screen. Nevertheless, it seemed so real. Ruka searched for its source and found it coming from the duck's mouth. He sighed.

'Imai's creation is always full of surprise.'

Luckily, there was no one else around. They watched the screen. A virtual bird appeared on the screen, and it was talking.

"Hi there!

Welcome to Hotaru Imai's Database

I'm going to tell you about Mikan Sakura"

Then, the bird disappeared, replaced by Mikan Sakura's face. However, its voice still can be heard

"

Mikan Sakura

14 Years Old

Alice : unknown

She created a history by avoiding the Alice Academy for 10 years

How she did it : unknown

She came here with her best friend, Leo Kusanagi

14 Years Old

Alice : unknown

Both of them are very popular in their schools

They are famous for their looks, intelligence and wealth

However, they are most admired for their creative pranks.

Known as the troublemakers in every school they went

They have been studying in almost 30 schools for the past 5 years

Their well-known trademark is to make the best pranks when they are leaving the schools

That's all for now

We'll update you later

"

Slowly, the light produced by the duck dissolved… and, everything back to normal. They were too shocked to say anything.

It was Natsume who regained his consciousness first.

"Well then, keep investigating. Anything new, just inform us."

Hotaru nodded and took her robot duck before started to walk away.

Ruka looked at Natsume, "Troublemaker… but she doesn't seem to be the rebellious type"

Natsume lied down, his hands placed at the back of his head. This Mikan Sakura-thingy has conquered his mind for the past few days.

He closed his eyes in exasperation.

"Probably, there's nothing to be rebelled… yet."

* * *

The next day…

"All right class! You don't want be late for your alice type-class. Off you…" Mr. Narumi reminded his students

Most of them started to pack their things while Mikan was watching everyone, feeling confused. Mr. Narumi noticed this and went to Mikan's place.

"Oh, I think Yuu forget to tell you. Every Monday, we have classes based on our alice-type."

Mr. Narumi told Mikan briefly about the four types of alice.

"You should have known by now where you're supposed to go, Mikan-chan?"

Mikan smiled truthfully at Mr. Narumi and nodded. She thanked her teacher, grabbed her bag and was on her way out of the class when Anna asked her.

"Mikan, where are you going? Are you in the same class as me?"

The classroom suddenly became quiet. They were looking at her, waiting for her reply. Ignoring those stares, Mikan just smiled at Anna and went out of the class. A few students shook their head and smiled. They were already used with Mikan's character. Kind, cheerful but full of secrets.

Although they were curious about Mikan's alice, their inquisitiveness was nothing compared to the desperate Sumire Shouda. There are still few days left till their two-weeks bet. And, she would do anything to know what Mikan's alice is; anything… including spying on her.

So, when Mikan left the class, she and her friends followed her.

"Mikan Sakura… **You're dead!**" she smiled evilly.

* * *

_**Mikan : Ooh… I'm scared!!! Hahaha…**_

_**Permy : Ha! You can laugh now… In the next chapter, you'll definitely suffer. I'm going to**_

_**make you my slave…**_

_**Mysticlife-fh : We'll see, guys! Please review!!!**_


	5. The undercover

* * *

_**Mysticlife-fh : Ok, thanks for all your comments…**_

_**Sumire : Well, what can I say?? Mysticlife-fh really likes me. I'll appear again!!!**_

_**Mikan : Tsk.. let us see whether you can challenge me or not, PERMY!!!**_

* * *

"You're dead, Mikan Sakura!"

Permy and her friends followed her trail. Mikan was walking steadily, apparently unaware of Sumire' existence.

Sumire was grinning evilly.

Finally, Mikan stopped abruptly. Sumire was eyeing her suspiciously,

'Did she realize I'm following her?'

She started to feel panic. Her adrenaline began to rise…

Suddenly, Mikan slapped her forehead.

"Shit! I took the wrong way!! Oh, now I'm late for my class."

Mikan turned left and started to go into the direction. Permy went after her. She was walking halfway when she noticed her friends were not behind her.

She quickly looked around and found her friends who were tip-toeing to the opposite way.

"Oiit!!! Where are you going? She went this way!!"

Her friends, shocked at being summoned, turned to face her. They were wearing anxious look on their face. One of them began to speak…

"S-s-sumire, Sa-sa-sakura is right. We're late for our class. Mr. Misaki will be very angry if we're skipping class"

Realizing the danger of Sumire's anger aura, they quickly ran away.

This left Sumire Shouda alone.

"Ooh… that's so great! Sakura, you'll have to pay!!!!" she muttered through her gritted teeth.

Then, she proceeded with her plan. She had to run to catch up with her.

Finally, she found Mikan, who was a few metres away from her. She panted slightly.

'Following this useless girl is really tiring'

Then, Sumire's eyes glittered in amusement when she saw Mikan opened a door and entered.

"YES!!! YES!!! Finally!" she jumped happily.

She waited there for a while, in case Mikan reappeared.

Sumire watched her surroundings.

'This seems familiar' she thought.

She got rid of her silly thought. It has been a few minutes and there was no sign of Mikan Sakura. Without hesitation, she made her way to the door.

"Gotcha!" she said quietly, unable to control her happiness.

Slowly, she reached the doorknob and opened the door, revealing… 

"A TOILET ?!?!?!?" 

Sumire's jaw dropped several metres. Her brain was working hard.

'No wonder the pathway is so familiar. It's the corridor to the girls' toilet! And… some moron has taken out the sign on the door!'

She knocked her head in exasperation. She had late for her class. And yet, she still failed to find out about Mikan's alice.

She muttered to herself "How dare you, Mi…-"

Then, it hit her.

"Hang on! That girl never came out from the toilet. I'm sure of that!"

She started to wander around the toilet, checking the cubicles.

"So, she must be somewhere…"

Her legs stopped at the sight of the last cubicle. It was the only cubicle with its door closed.

"Here!" she said as she pushed the door.

Her eyes were wide in shock when she saw what was in the cubicle. She was too surprised until she didn't realize she was already sitting on the floor.

The cubicle was empty was one thing. Obviously, Mikan has escaped through the opened window beside it. But…. This????

Engraved on the wall of the cubicle was a short sentence, written in font size- 72 using red marker. 

"SHOUDA THE LOSER" 

* * *

Mikan Sakura was walking happily at the school ground. She was on her way to her favourite spot when she heard an extremely loud shriek from faraway 

"SAAAAAAAAAKUUUUUUUUUUUUURAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

It was Sumire's voice. Mikan was unable to control her laughter anymore.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAA !!!!"

"Today is such a great day", she said, watching the perfect blue sky.

"And, nothing could be better".

She finally arrived at the North Forest. No one was there as they were too scared to enter. However, Mikan found this place breathtaking. She sat at the small clearing inside the forest, where she was surrounded with various species of plants. Butterflies flew around her, as though they were happy of her existence. For the first time, she felt calm and full of serenity.

She wanted to take a nap for a while, but something attracts her eyes. It was a flower, lying on the ground.

"Sakura…"

Without gave it a thought, she went to pick it. It was so beautiful. She decided to keep it when suddenly…

"NO! Don't touch me, YOU IDIOT!!!"

Mikan was so shocked to hear an angry voice that she threw the flower unintentionally. She looked around her, trying to locate the voice.

"OUCH!! It hurts! Can't you put me gently??? There's no need to drop me like that, you know!!!!"

Then, Mikan realized it. She placed her wide eyes back to the flower. It was moving slightly.

And, it was blabbering…

"How dare YOU!! To do that to a lovely flower like me!!"

Then, she heard someone too familiar was roaring with laughter behind the bush. Trying hard to sustain her anger level, she went there and saw a boy was laughing and rolling on the floor.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!"

Mikan just stood there angrily, folding her arms.

"That's not funny, Leo!!!" she snarled.

Hearing her words, Leo laughed louder. It took him 10 minutes to recover.

"That was hilarious, Mikan! I never knew you could make that kind of expression."

He said while mimicking Mikan's face of shockness.

Mikan who saw Leo's ugly expression failed to maintain her anger anymore. She burst into laughing.

She knocked Leo's head softly several times for revenge. He just smiled and rubbed his head.

"Well, you may be good in doing pranks, but clearly you are no match compared to me!!"

He declared triumphantly. Mikan just smiled at him.

He went to pick the Sakura flower.

"You've done a great job, there! Thank you!" he said, touching the flower gently.

"No problem, Master. Miss Mikan, I'm sorry. I didn't mean-"

"It's okay. If there's someone whom I should be angry with, it will be him!" she pointed to Leo.

Leo sniggered before gave the Sakura flower to Mikan.

"Take good care of it."

Mikan smiled and nodded. She looked at the flower.

"I envy your alice, Leo. It's so pure and innocent."

"And, it is a burden too." He sighed. "Being able to give life to any objects, I'm afraid it will cause more harm than good"

Mikan stared at Leo who was wearing a worried look.

"It won't, because it's you who possessed it. And I'm sure you won't ever let that happen."

* * *

At night… 

Natsume was walking into the dark woods. He tried to move as slow as he could.

"Natsume…"

He stopped when he saw the one he loathed the most.

Persona…

"You're late"

Natsume ignored his remarks

"What's the mission?"

Persona smilled evilly.

"As always, protect. The AAO sent quite a number of capable enemies. So, if you must, use your power at maximum level. I don't care what happened to you. But, if you failed to guard, you know who'll suffer."

Natsume's eyes burned in anger. Visions of Ruka, his best friend and Aoi, his sister appeared in his mind.

"Tch… tell me something I don't know"

Natsume proceeded with his mission. He placed himself on one of the trees.

He watched from afar as a black BMW drove passed him. His eyes moved around, trying to sense anything peculiar.

That was when he saw three men were trying to approach the car. He landed right in front of them, causing them to jerk away suddenly.

"Black cat!!"

One of them started to catch him. But, Natsume was too fast for him. He produced a fire barrier separating them.

An older man tried to shoot him. Luckily, Natsume managed to duck it easily.

'That was weird. They're so weak. What the-'

Natsume realized something.

"Oh, shit!!!" he conjured fire encircling the three men.

After that, he darted towards the car he was supposed to protect.

He finally saw the black car being stopped at the side of the road. Two men were approaching it. A young man made to open the door to capture the person. Natsume quickly produced fire, causing his hair to burn.

Natsume walked towards them. He was wearing a furious expression.

A dark-haired man smirked at the sight of Natsume.

"Aah… Hyuuga! You're late, I see! Looks like our plan to lure you somewhere else was quite effective."

He shot Natsume with pointed ices. Natsume who was aware of the man's alice dodged the ices that were as sharp as a knife. They missed him by a few centimeters.

"But not good enough" Natsume said.

He sent fireballs at the man but he smashed it away with his ice. Both of them keep dueling. The man was too preoccupied with his fight that he didn't realize the car was moving away.

However, the other AAO whose hair was burnt tried to chase the car. He pointed his gun towards the car. Upon seeing this, Natsume ran after the man and placed fire to his gun. This caused the man to drop it abruptly. Natsume punched him hard on the face, causing him to fall.

But, the man grabbed Natsume's leg roughly. Natsume stumbled and fell down as well. He placed his hands on Natsume's throat and tried to choke him. Natsume, gasping for air aimed a kick at his stomach. He fell backwards.

Natsume coughed and spat out blood. He felt dizzy suddenly. He was unaware of the full-speed pointed ice that was moving directly at him.

It happened in a split second. Suddenly, there was something shimmering appeared around Natsume. The light was getting brighter and illuminated the dark. It was impossible for them to see anything. Natsume used his hands to block the light from blinding him.

As fast as it came, the beam disappeared. Everyone were startled for a while.

"Yuri!!" the young man ran to the ice-alice.

The man was wearing a shock expression on his face. Blood was dripping from his left hand. Natsume's eyes were wide in surprise as he saw a pointed ice stabbed on the man's arm. The man was hurt by his own alice!

"You'll pay for this, boy!" he snarled at Natsume before vanished from sight.

Natsume was too dumbfounded to say anything. He walked slowly back to academy.

'The ice… I'm sure it was inches apart from me. But… how did it rebound back to that man?? And, the light… what was it???'

"Aaargh…" Natsume sighed in depression. He was physically and mentally exhausted.

"I guess there's no point thinking of this. What I need right now is my bed."

Eventually, he arrived at the school ground and entered the dormitories. 

What he did not realized is he was being watched attentively by someone.

As soon as he entered the building, a person appeared from the hideout.

The person smiled.

"That was close…" 

* * *

_**Natsume : Who is that???**_

_**Ruka : How should I know… Persona, maybe???**_

_**Yuu : Nah, maybe someone from AAO**_

_**Hotaru : Or, maybe-**_

_**Mysticlife-fh : Enough of your assumptions. Don't spoil my story!! Wait for next chapter, will **_

_** Ya?? And, please review…**_


	6. Ruka's Anger

* * *

_**Mysticlife-fh : Ok.. Ok... Don't get mad with me... I'm a little busy. Sorry! Anyway, here it is... You can see for yourself**_

_** whether your guesses are right or not:-)**_

**_Mikan : Psst... Better watch out with Ruka. He's emotionally unstable..._**

**_ Ruka : I'M NOT!!! SHE'S LYING!!!!!_**

**_Mikan : See?? I told ya.._**

****

* * *

**_  
_**

**RUKA'S ANGER**

As soon as Natsume entered the building, a person appeared from the hideout.

The person smiled.

"That was close…"

In order to avoid being detected, the person used the roof to enter the building. Within minutes, the person has arrived at her room, or more particularly, **the attic.**

Mikan Sakura has just finished taking bath when someone knocked the door. It was Yuu.

"Mikan, where have you been? I went to your room an hour ago, but you were not here."

He was wearing a concern expression.

Mikan's mind started to make up reasons.

"Err… Really?? But I was here since dinner. Maybe I dozed off, Yuu." she showed an innocent look to Yuu.

"Oh, that's fine then! No worries." Yuu assure her. They talked for a few minutes before bidding good night at each other.

"Sorry, Yuu!" she said quietly, watching Yuu's figure disappearing from sight.

At first, she decided to go straight to bed. However, the lovely scenery of the starry sky changed her mind. Therefore, she made her way out of the attic to the rooftop. While she was lying down, facing the full-moon, she recalled the incident that occurred few hours ago.

Visions of Yuri, the man with alice of ice appeared in her mind. He was bleeding.

She sighed deeply. She felt somewhat regretted.

"Guess I used too much power there. My alice is not supposed to hurt him."

Her energy was drowning. The peaceful breeze enabled her to relax her mind. Without her knowing it, she fell asleep there and then.

* * *

'Voices of people can be heard from afar. Lots of them… There's Anna and Nonoko, and also Permy! Why are all of them appearing in my dream simultaneously???'

'And, why am I feeling so cold??? Where's my blanket??'

Mikan's hands were wandering to search for her blanket, but to no avail. She opened her eyes a little to locate it when she saw something that caused her to jerk awake suddenly.

"Oh,shit!!!"

She was sleeping on the rooftop! And, to make matters worst, she was late for her lesson!!! She looked at the ground. Anna and Nonoko were on their way to school, while Permy was laughing maniacally. Neither of them was unaware of Mikan's existence. It seems like the breakfast period was over!!

She quickly stood up and went to prepare for school as fast as she could. It's not that she was afraid of being punished, that's absolutely normal for prankster like her. But, to get punishment when it was not even two weeks since her arrival, that will caught too much attention. And, unlike her best friend, she hated attention.

Unfortunately, luck was not on her side today. She arrived the exact time Jin-Jin called her name, checking for attendance. When he saw Mikan at the door, his lips formed to an evil smile.

"I see you're making progress, Miss Sakura" teased Mr. Jinno.

Mikan ignored his remarks. She remained standing at the door. She knew exactly what he intended to do.

"Well, you don't have to bother to come in. Your seat is outside, Miss Sakura." He said, referring to the corridor. His eyes were full of hatred.

At behind, Permy was smiling evilly. She was mocking at Mikan.

To everyone's surprise, Mikan suppressed an angelic smile to Mr. Jinno. Without saying anything, she closed the door. Watching the anger face of Jin-jin when she closed the door was totally priceless.

* * *

"Did you see it? It's the new girl! She's stunning!!"

"Yup, she's extremely pretty!"

"And, I heard she's the only no-star in this whole academy"

Leo was on his way to the lab when he saw a group of boys were talking excitedly. He decided to ignore them but stopped abruptly when he heard of the word 'no-star'. He listened to their conversation attentively.

"Really?? I've to see her for myself, then! She is at the left-wing corridor, right??"

Leo has heard enough to realize that the girl was Mikan. He took a double-take and went to the left-wing side.

From afar, he could see a girl was leaning on the wall, a book in her hand. Apparently, she was in deep concentration with the book, totally oblivious of the boys' stares and the girls' gossiping around her.

Leo shook his head and sighed. He approached Mikan silently.

"Trying to grab everyone's attention, Mikan??"

Mikan, who was shocked at Leo's sudden greeting, dropped her book when he saw him.

"Oh my gosh! You're scaring me to death!!!" Mikan said quietly.

"Hey, this is not your usual path!" Mikan remembered. "Why are you here??"

Leo who smiled at Mikan who has finally returned to her normal self remembered the purpose of his visit.

"Oh ya! I was going to take my 'usual' path if I don't hear the boys talking about how pretty the brunette on the alleyway is and was planning stupid gross thing on her-"

"Wait a minute! Did you say pretty? Really??" Mikan teased him.

Leo stepped back suddenly, "Oooh… I never say that! Ever! It's just a quote from an idiot!"

Mikan just smirked and raised one of her eye-brows at Leo. She is too familiar with her best friend. He'll never say something good about her. Yet, that characters of him that attracted her to befriend him.

"Now, why don't you go...- hang on!" Leo has just realized something. He was eyeing Mikan suspiciously. "Don't tell me… you're being punished???"

Mikan rolled her eyes and gave him 'Duh-it-is-obvious-isn't-it?' look. Leo who was startled at first laughed uncontrollably. Mikan folded her arms, glaring at Leo.

"I came late for Jinno's class"

"Mikan Sakura, the famous troublemaker… is being punished by Jin-jin???" Leo tried to stop laughing.

Still smiling, he continued, "He really holds grudge on you, isn't it?" He laughed again.

"Ooh, stop it! Leo, help me out, please!" she requested.

"I'm not sure, Mikan. Because, I was kind of enjoying watching you standing here." he frowned.

Upon seeing Mikan's deadly glare, he smirked. "All right, all right… Just watch and learn"

He walked to the door, pretended to inhale and exhale a few times before knocking the door. When he heard Jinno's voice allowing him to come in, he smartened himself and wore a kind, innocent expression. He winked at Mikan. Then, he opened the door and entered politely. Mikan couldn't help but laughed at his act.

Through the opened door that Leo left on purpose, she could hear clearly the conversation…

"Mr. Kusanagi, what brings you here?"

Everyone's attention turned to Leo. All of them thought of the same thing.

'There has never been anyone who dared to disrupt Jinno's class before. He's DEAD!'

"I'm really sorry, sir!" Leo apologized politely. "But, Mr. Narumi required for Mikan Sakura to his office."

Everyone was holding their breath upon noticing Mr. Jinno's stern face when he heard the name 'Mikan Sakura'.

"No one was allowed to interrupt my class, Mr. Kusanagi. I thought you should have known by now." He eyed Leo.

The boys started to smirk while some girls were gasping, worrying that Leo might get hurt.

"Oh, my! New boy doesn't know who he's messing with..." teased Mochu.

"Yes, sir. I fully-understand how serious you are in teaching the students. There's no doubt that you care about the students' achievement more than any other teachers in this school. However, no matter how hard I tried to rebut, Mr. Narumi is still keep insisting on it. He said that it is an emergency matter." He replied calmly, but with a concerned tone.

Although everyone's eyes were on Leo, Natsume was aware of Jinno's sudden change of mood.

"And, I was feeling guilty either to give priority to my favourite teacher's principle or Mikan Sakura's problem. However, if that's your final say, I shall return to inform Mr. Narumi." He added smoothly.

He bowed his head in respect and started to walk out of the class.

Natsume smirked, 'So, this is the other prankster. He really know how to play with words'

The students' heads started to turn from Leo to Mr. Jinno as though they were watching a tennis match. They were waiting anxiously… What will happen next???

Leo almost reached the door when finally, Jin-jin spoke…

"Fine, fine… Take your friend"

Nearly everyone's jaws dropped. Never, in the history of Alice Academy, Jinno became this soft with the student.

"Thank you, sir! Thank you very much!". When Leo smiled, half of the girls' heart melted.

He disappeared from sight in no time, but Natsume did not miss the smirk formed by his lips a second before he left.

"Koko…" Natsume called the mind-reader.

Koko smirked before answering. "Just like what you're thinking, Natsume. It's a lie. He did that to help Sakura out."

* * *

Exactly after Jinno's period ended, Mikan returned to her class. When they saw her, the girls started to surround her. While Anna and Nonoko were worried of Mikan being summoned by Mr. Narumi, most of the girls were curious about Leo. Mikan tried to give the least info as possible about her best friend and made her way to her seat.

Still feeling exhausted of yesterday's event, Mikan landed her head on the table. Natsume went missing again, leaving Ruka who was stroking his bunny softly. He was smiling. Then, something popped up in Mikan's mind.

"Why…" she started.

After hearing Mikan's voice, Ruka stopped smiling. He looked at Mikan, as though waiting for her to continue. Mikan, upon spotting the drastic change of Ruka's expression couldn't stop laughing.

"HAHAHA… Sorry, Ruka-pyon. I can't stand. You're really funny! HAHAHA…."

Ruka's fangirls stared at Mikan, feeling surprised. They knew Ruka too well that they're sure 'FUNNY' is definitely not listed in Ruka's character. It took Mikan a few seconds to calm herself. She was still smiling, though…

"Do you hate me that much, Ruka-pyon? Am I that bad that I don't even deserve the smile you've given every time you look at your bunny?" she said softly.

This question was beyond Ruka's expectation. He tried to conceal his shockness.

"Or…" she continued. "Are we, human beings are not qualified enough to share your happiness?"

Ruka stood up abruptly, causing his chair to fall backwards. This caught everyone's attention. Ruka's face was reddening with anger. He shouted at the top of his voice at Mikan.

"IT'S NOT A MATTER OF QUALIFICATION, BUT WHETHER OR NOT YOU'LL BE ABLE TO UNDERSTAND EVERY HARDSHIP THAT ONES HAVE TO FACE. THAT'S WHAT IMPORTANT!! WITH THE HEAD OF YOURS, A PRANKSTER WHO KNOWS NOTHING BUT FUN, I DOUBT YOU'LL ABLE TO DO THAT, EVER!!!!" he snarled.

Some of the girls were taken aback of Ruka's words of anger. They've never seen Ruka this harsh before. Mikan, whose bangs have been covering her eyes, remained silent.

Ruka snorted in tense. He started to walk towards the door. All he wanted to do now is to calm down.

"Then, show it…"

Ruka stopped. He turned to face her. He was startled when he saw Mikan's eyes. Her eyes were not watery. Instead, they showed him the feeling of pain, full of suffering. Yet, she still managed to give him a small smile.

"If I'm that pathetic troublemaker whose life is all about enjoy, why don't you show me how to understand. Tell me how to do it. Tell me…" she said calmly.

"It's you yourself who forbid us from being friendly with you, don't just find thousands of excuses and put the blame on someone else. At least, I tried…"

With that, she left the class. Ruka returned to his seat, ignoring the stares and whispers. Mikan's word are soft, but has caused him the pain similar to 1000 needles. Yet, why was he feeling so angry with her??

'Maybe, that's because everything she said… is true…'

* * *

The next day, everyone attended school. Even Natsume decided to stay in the class. As always, Mikan was the last to enter the class. She greeted Yuu, Anna and Nonoko cheerfully.

'Looks like Mikan is as happy as usual' Yuu felt relief. After yesterday's argument, he was worried for her.

She took her seat and decided to try her luck on Natsume, whom she knew will turn her down.

"Good morning, Natsume!"

She sniggered when Natsume ignored her. She shifted her eyes to watch Ruka, who was wearing a stern look.

"Morning, Ruka-pyon"

Everyone's eyes were suddenly on Ruka-pyon. They were waiting impatiently for his reply. Hotaru Imai was holding her donkey-like camera, ready to capture Ruka's angry face.

Meanwhile, Ruka was stunned. He thought Mikan was still hurt with his insult yesterday. He never expected her to recover so quickly.

Without him realizing it, he mumbled "Morning" back to Mikan. Everyone's eyes were wide in shock. Hotaru dropped her head in despair.

As though just realized what he just did, Ruka blushed furiously. He tried to explain to Natsume who was surprised as well…

"No, Natsume… it's not-"

"Do what you wish, Ruka" he said, returning to his original self.

Ruka's fangirls started to feel jealous at Mikan. And, sure enough, Mikan was being dragged away by Sumire. She accused Mikan of using spells on Ruka. However, being Mikan, nothing could wavered her calmness.

Buzzes were beginning to fade away when suddenly…

"WHAT????"

It was Sumire. Her shriek covered the whole school area. She was looking at Mikan, her eyes in terror.

Mikan, whose hand now on her waist, smirked. "You don't want me to repeat that, Permy!"

"NO! IT CAN'T BE!!!! WHAT'S TODAY'S DATE????" She hastily grabbed the calendar and looked at it, while most of the students were staring at her peculiarly.

Seeing Sumire's panic voice, Mikan smiled. This time, she spoke loud enough for the whole class to hear.

"You heard me. It's exactly two weeks since my arrival, Shouda. Today's the end of our deal."

Mikan folded her arms and smiled triumphantly, "So, what's my alice?"

The students, including Sumire herself has forgotten about the deal. Unfortunately, Mikan is not one of them. Half of the class couldn't believe their eyes. Sumire Shouda never showed this kind of attitude before. She was in panic.

Sumire opened her mouth several times to answer, but each time she closed it back. Eventually, she sighed in defeat.

"Well then, I guess I win." Mikan smiled. She placed her finger under the chin, as though thinking of something.

"Let me see… what should I ask you to do??"

Everyone was waiting anxiously.

"Ah, I got it!" Mikan snapped her finger. Then, she bent down to whisper something to Sumire.

It's impossible for anyone else to hear apart from both of them. Yuu and the others searched for the boy with remote-hearing alice to know what was Mikan's order. Unfortunately, the boy went to toilet. They sighed in disappointment.

When Mikan finished giving her order to Sumire, everyone was aware of Permy's dumbstruck expression. She stared at Mikan in disbelieve.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU SAYING??" she shouted.

Mikan smiled and shrugged. "It's up to you, Sumire. Choices in your hand."

Before she was able to say anything, Mr. Misaki has entered the class. Everyone returned to their seats. However, none of them paid attention to their Biology lesson. Even Yuu, the best student failed to concentrate.

'What is Mikan's order?'

* * *

_**Mysticlife-fh : At first, I was thinking of making this fanfic a short story as this is my 1st trial. But then, ideas kept popping**_

_** up in my mind. And now, I'm not sure anymore... So, what do you guys think?? Help me out in making **_

_** decision, will ya !!!**_

_**Mikan : Oh yes, you're allowed to guess. But that doesn't mean we'll answer!! Keep guessing !!!! wink  
**_

_**Permy : Find out what that prankster asked me to do in the next chapter...  
**_


	7. Jinno is GAY?

* * *

**_Mysticlife-fh : Hmm... Let me see. Well, the title has explained it all!! Keep reviewing!!!!_**

**_Jinno : THIS IS A PROVOKE!! I BANNED THIS CHAPTER FROM BEING PUBLISHED!!!!_**

_**Mikan Sakura : Unfortunately, Jin-Jin, you have no right to say anything... Don't worry, guys! READ!!**_

* * *

. 

**On Previous Episode**

_"Well then, I guess I win." Mikan smiled. She placed her finger under the chin, as though thinking of something. "Let me see… what should I ask you to do??"_

_Everyone was waiting anxiously._

_"Ah, I got it!" Mikan snapped her finger. Then, she bent down to whisper something to Sumire._

_"What the hell are you saying??" she shouted._

_Mikan shrugged. "It's up to you, Sumire. Choices in your hand."_

* * *

**JINNO IS... GAY???**_  
_

Mikan, Yuu, Anna and Nonoko were taking a walk at the school ground. They rested for a while at the school garden. Then, something caught Anna's eyes…

It was Sumire Shouda. She was walking; her face wore a serious expression. She was mumbling something to herself. Mikan saw her as well and suppress a smile.

"You know what, Mikan. You really change her. She has never been this silent before. Usually, she will spend her free time hunting over Natsume or Ruka." Anna said.

"Yup, and if she failed to find them, she will disturb us in class with her bossy attitude. It was quite annoying though. But, look at her now… You're excellent, Mikan!" Nonoko said admiringly.

Meanwhile, Yuu was worried. He opened his mouth to say something, but thought better of it. However, Mikan sensed his action. She closed her eyes, feeling the soft wind on her cheek.

"Yuu, shoot…"

The Class President looked at the cool Mikan. He knew it was safe to ask her.

"Mikan-chan, what is your order to her??"

"What do you reckon???" she asked him instead.

"Hmm… I was thinking, you ordered her to keep quiet all the time…"

There was no reply from Mikan.

Anna questioned impatiently, "Is it really, Mikan??"

"That will be too boring, Yuu…" Mikan's lips formed a smile.

* * *

. 

Few days later…

Yuu was walking back and forth in front of the class. He was frowning. Suddenly, the door was being opened and a brunette entered. Upon seeing her, Yuu let go a loud sigh.

"Mikan, where have you been? The class has started 10 minutes ago. You're lucky Mr. Jinno isn't here yet".

Mikan smiled at Yuu, "Don't worry".

Seconds later, the door was opened again. The class went quiet, expecting the Math teacher to appear. Instead, a blonde-haired man came in. It was Mr. Narumi.

"Morning, class… Today, you're gonna have your self-study lesson. So-"

"But, sir… This is Mr. Jinno's class" a girl interrupted.

Mr. Narumi suppressed a small smile. "Oh, didn't you know? Mr. Jinno is on leave. He's not feeling well".

The students shared peculiar looks. However, they couldn't help but to feel happy of Mr. Jinno's absence.

* * *

. 

"What happened to Jinno?"

"I don't know. Yesterday was the first time he did not attend his lesson."

"I heard that he is sick. Ooh… how I wish he'll disappear for a week"

Mikan Sakura who was walking behind the girls heard their conversation. As she walked past them, she spoke softly, loud enough for the girls to hear.

"Your wish has been granted…"

* * *

. 

It was their Math lesson. Everyone were waiting anxiously, debating whether Mr. Jinno will be present or not. Then, Yuu Tobita came in.

"Friends… Mr. Jinno is still on leave."

Upon hearing this, the class laughed jubilantly. They were enjoying and celebrating when suddenly the door was flung open. The students gazed to the door.

"KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHH…………………"

The girls shrieked loudly while some of the boys' eyes were in terror. Stood at the entrance of the class, there was an eerie man. He was in a complete mess; his beard unshaved, his shirt full of dirt, along with his long, shaggy hair. But, what's most scary about him was his eyes. They were RED…

Then, Hotaru realized something.

'This man… he is so familiar. He is… he is….'

Then, she shouted to the class.

"CLASS! IT'S MR. JINNO!!!"

The students stared back at the angry man. He was wearing the same cloth as Mr. Jinno. They were startled. Mr. Jinno… What happened to him?

Suddenly, he ran across the class. The students started to run away for him. They were scared he'll attack them. Instead, he ignored them. Eventually, his legs stopped at the back of the class. His fiery eyes were fixed upon only one person.

"MIKAN!! RUN!" Anna warned her.

But, Mikan Sakura remained unmoved. She was staring back to the man in front of her.

"YOU STEAL IT, DIDN'T YOU????" Mr. Jinno shouted, his voice were hoarse.

While most of the class were feeling perplexed, Mikan was still calm.

"I'm sorry, Sir. I don't know what you mean."

"I KNOW YOU STEAL IT! YOU'RE ANGRY WITH ME!!!" his volume was getting louder and louder.

"Steal what, sir?? I don't understand." Mikan replied; she was smiling.

The class started to feel the aura of anger around Mr. Jinno. Clearly, Mikan has hit the nerve. Mr. Jinno was facing downwards. Some girls closed their eyes, too afraid to witness the next scene.

Then, suddenly…

DUM! DUM!

Mr. Jinno stomped his feet several times, like a child who failed to get what he wants.

"IT'S NOT FAIR! IT'S NOT FAIR! GIMME BACK… I WANT IT BACK!" Mr. Jinno shouted, except that his voice this time was too… GAY-ish!!!

The students' jaws dropped…

DUM! DUM!

"I don't care! 'sob' I want it back! 'sob' " his eyes were teary.

The class were totally stunned by Mr. Jinno's new form.

"SSHHHREEEEEDDD" Mr. Jinno blew his nose on to his own, dirty shirt.

Seeing this, the whole class fought hard not to laugh.

Mikan who tried to conceal her laughter continued talking.

"I'm really sorry. I don't understand even a word what you're saying"

DUM! DUM!

"Y-y-you'll pay! I'll r-r-report to Narumi!!" his GAY-ish voice appeared again.

This was the last straw. And, sure enough…

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

The class broke into the loudest laughter ever heard. Even Natsume smirked.

Mr. Jinno looked all over the class, feeling surprised. He backed away a little. He made a puppy-eye and shook his head.

"NO! NO! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!"

He shouted and ran out of the class gracefully with his hands covering his face.

The students were, by now, rolling on the floor.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Meanwhile, Yuu approached Mikan

"Steal what, Mikan??"

Mikan just shrugged and smiled.

"Natsume, something was wrong with Jinno." Ruka was thinking hard.

"Yeah, his GAY-attitude showed up".

"Not that, something was missing… I dunno what"

* * *

. 

The next day…

"HOT STORY!! HOT STORY!! MR. J'S LOVESICK!!!!"

The students were having breakfast at the cafeteria when they heard the newspaper's team were promoting their morning-edition news. The headline was enough to attract the students' attention. In no time, the Morning Gazette were sold out.

Anna who succeeded to buy one returned to her place, where Mikan and Nonoko were sitting.

"What did it says?" Nonoko asked impatiently.

"Mr. J was well-known for his serious and cold-hearted attitude. However, not many know that presently, he is suffering from a lovesick." Anna read it out loud.

"Few days ago, Mr. J lost his loved one. Due to the incident, he became extremely weak. He kept fainting all over the place. Yesterday, he was admitted to Alice Hospital."

"Loved one?? Who is it?? I thought he has no relative" Nonoko asked.

Then, a group of boys who were reading the gazette as well laughed hardly. And, this was followed with the group next to them. And, in no time, the whole cafeteria burst into laughter.

"What's up with them? What's so funny with Jinno's getting sick?" Nonoko found the situation weird.

Anna who was watching them with her gaping mouth jerked away suddenly when Mikan poked her.

"Keep on reading."

"Oh, right…" she read silently and soon after…

"HUAHUAHUA…" Anna was booming with laughter. Everyone's attention turned to her. Nonoko made to shut her mouth, but to no avail.

"Sorry… HAHA… girls… HAHA… I can't stand… It's sooo funny!" Anna said while trying to stop laughing.

She shoved the gazette to Mikan and Nonoko. Then, they finally know the reason.

"After thorough investigation by our excellent reporter, we've managed to find out who is Jinno's loved one." Nonoko recited to Mikan.

"It is none other than… THE FROG?!?!" Nonoko's eyes were wide open. She sniggered before continued reading.

"His frog has already been missing for a few days. Since then, he kept wandering around the school for hours to locate it. Unfortunately, there was no sign of it at all."

Nonoko looked suddenly at Mikan who was smiling by now.

"That's why he attacked you yesterday! He accused you stealing his frog!!" Nonoko pointed.

"Don't you think it's hilarious??" Anna giggled. "Who knows the cruel Mr. Jinno would turn into 'this' soft!!! And, all of this is just because of… A FROG???" she exclaimed.

And, the three of them laughed heartily.

BLURP! BLURP!

The students looked at the source. It was Sumire. She was hugging her bag tightly.

"Oops… S-s-sorry! Guess I'm too hungry…" she sweated.

And, when the attention from her was removed, she sighed.

* * *

. 

Thanks to the missing frog, the students had a Jinno-free lesson for a week. That was the most memorable week the student ever experienced since they arrived.

At Mikan's class, they were doing their own job when they heard someone shouted loudly at the alleyway.

"JINNO'S FROG HAS BEEN FOUND! THE FROG HAS BEEN FOUND!" It was the boy with the voice-ampifier alice.

The whole students ran out of the class. They followed the commotion who was heading towards the school ground. From afar, they could see hundreds of Middle-high students assembled around the water fountain. And, the frog was sitting peacefully at the fountain.

"FRIGGLYPUFF!!!"

A kilometer away, they saw Mr. Jinno was running madly towards his frog. Apparently, he escaped from hospital as soon as the news hit his ears. He was still wearing the patient's cloth, dragging the tubes that were placed on his hands.

"Frigglypuff?? What type of name is that??" A boy said. His friends around him laughed loudly.

And, when he saw his frog, he was so happy that he didn't realized what he was doing.

"Ooh, you're alive! You're alive!" Mr. Jinno was jumping and clapping his hands joyfully.

Seeing this, the students tried to conceal their laughter seeing the GAY Jinno.

Lucky for them, Mr. Jinno was too concentrating on his reunion that he was totally oblivious of students' existence around him.

And, fastly… he approached the frog and get hold of him. His eyes were gleaming happily. To much surprise, he moved the 'Frigglypuff' towards him, and…

CUPPP!!!

He planted a long kiss to the frog.

"WUEEEKKKKK" Few girls found it disgusting and vomited there and then.

"Eeeeuuuu…. That's gross!" A girl closed her eyes.

"OOH LOOK! THE FROG TURNS INTO A BEAUTIFUL PRINCESS!!!" Leo shouted, teasing Jinno.

Upon hearing this, the whole crowd unable to resist anymore. They laughed boisterously till their laughter can be heard throughout the Alice Academy.

"HAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHHAAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHA"

This time, Mr. Jinno was finally aware of the students around him. He was shocked for a while when he saw hundreds of student at the school ground.

Unfortunately for them, Jinno's reunion with his Frigglypuff marked the end of his GAY-days. And, this means…

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?? I ORDER YOU, RETURN TO YOUR RESPECTIVE CLASSES AT ONCE!!! NOW!!!!"

Jinno's serious form is back.

Without much hesitation, the students started to move away. However, that didn't stop them from keep talking.

"Ooh… I'm gonna miss the 'soft' Jin-Jin. It's so sweeeeet!" a girl said while entering her class and her gang giggled happily.

* * *

. 

At Mikan's class, the students were talking about the recent events.

"Well, Jinno has received a well-deserved punishment!" a boy exclaimed.

The whole class nodded in agreement.

"Talking about punishment, when is Shouda's punishment, Sakura??" Mochu asked curiously.

"Yeah, don't say you went soft with her!" another boy added.

All heads turned to look at Mikan Sakura, who was reading book.

Still not moving her eyes from the book, Mikan replied shortly.

"It's just over".

"**WHAT??????" **

She closed her book and faced the 30 pairs of eyes in front of her.

"You don't think the frog got lost by its own, do you??" she smiled.

"Permy has done a really a great job there!" she said, smirking at the green-haired girl.

All of the students shifted their eyes to Sumire, who was laughing boastfully.

And, soon enough, the whole class joined in the laughter.

* * *

. 

They don't know how long this happy moment is going to lasts…

But, what they want to do right now,

Is to cherish it forever….

* * *

. 

_**Mysticlife-fh : Well, this whole chapter is dedicated to Jinno the Gay. Hope you guys enjoyed it as much as previous ones!!**_

_**Mikan : Don't worry! Next chapter... we gonna have more about me and that idiot, obnoxious Natsume...**_

_**Natsume : Watch your mouth, girl!!!**_

_**Mysticlife-fh : Don't forget to leave your comments!!!!!!**_


	8. Central Town

* * *

_**Mysticlife-fh : Ooh, I've been away from home for almost a week. So, I've no time to update. Keep R & R!**_

_**Mikan : Ok, this episode is all about incidents at the Central Town!!!**_

_**Nonoko : And, there's a new mysterious character, she is HANA!!!**_

* * *

_  
_

_Previous chapter :_

"_You don't think the frog got lost by its own, do you??" Mikan smiled. _

"_Permy has done a really a great job there!" she said, smirking at the green-haired girl._

_All of the students shifted their eyes to Sumire, who was laughing boastfully._

_And, soon enough, the whole class joined in the laughter._

* * *

**Central Town**

It has already been a month since the 'Jinno the Gay' incident. Everyone has stopped talking about it, but it is absolutely impossible for them to forget. Mr. Jinno has misused his power to ban The Morning Gazette from being published for two months. However, this didn't stop them from selling their edition illegally.

For Mikan Sakura and her friends, everything turns back to normal…

At class…

"Hey, guys! Mr. Narumi has allowed us to go to Central Town this week!!!"

The whole class screamed in excitement.

"Going, Mikan??"

Mikan shrugged.

"Oh, I don't know, Anna. Leo is not coming."

"Then, why don't you go with us??" Nonoko offered.

Mikan's eyes gleamed with joyfulness.

"Really??"

Anna and Nonoko smiled and nodded.

* * *

. 

At the Central Town…

"WOW! This is such a huge place!" Mikan said admiringly.

Anna and Nonoko dragged Mikan to the Alice Boutique, where they insisted Mikan to try wearing a beautiful red gown. It's off-shoulder and fitted into her slim figure perfectly.

"You look stunning, Mikan! Buy it!!"

"Yeah, it suits you very well!! You can wear it on the Dance Night later!!"

Mikan looked at her image on the mirror with a weird look.

"N-N-No… I don't like it. It's too… attractive!" she frowned.

Anna stared at Mikan disbelievingly.

"That's what girls want, Mikan! To get more attention than anyone else!!" she exclaimed.

Mikan shook her head. "I- I- I don't like attention…"

Nonoko sighed and smiled at Mikan. She raised one of her eye-brows.

"Are you even a girl, Mikan?"

The triple laughed jubilantly. At last, both of them gave up on Mikan and brought her to visit other girlish shops.

The only thing that Mikan bought so far is…

…

"HO-WA-LON???"

Anna's and Nonoko's jaw dropped.

"After dozens of shops that we have showed you, you only buy… Howalon??"

Mikan offered them but they shook their head, still looking at her in shockness.

Mikan shrugged and smiled. "It tastes good."

* * *

It's already noon, and they have no idea where to go next. 

Then, Nonoko saw something that attracted her attention.

She elbowed both Anna and Mikan and pointed to the small stall across the road.

"HANA, FORTUNE-TELLER"

"Oh, I've heard about Hana!" Anna exclaimed.

"All of her predictions come true. Everyone thought her as a true Seer. She could even sense dark intentions among people just by looking at them. She could tell who you really are easily."

Anna's words rang in Mikan's ears. She stared blankly at the dark, eerie stall.

…..

…….

"…_she could even sense dark intentions…"_

"…_.she could tell who you really are easily.…_

……..

…..

She was totally lost in her thought that she didn't realize Nonoko was calling her.

"MIIIIIKAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNNN"

Mikan jerked away suddenly and looked at Anna and Nonoko, who were smiling by now.

"WHAT?" she returned calm.

"Let's go there!"

Before Mikan was able to argue back, the girls had dragged her to the stall.

* * *

In no time, they have arrived in front of the stall. Anna and Nonoko entered excitedly. Mikan was about to turn away when Anna grabbed her hands and pulled her in. 

The second she entered, she found herself facing a young, pale woman. She was wearing a black cloak. Her clear blue eyes stared at Mikan attentively, as though her eyes could penetrate Mikan's physical appearance; as though she could see her inner self.

Mikan broke the eye-contact abruptly and decided to watch her surrounding. In spite of the limited space in there, the fortune-teller managed to cram lots of unique ornaments around her.

"Who wants the fortune-telling?" Hana's voice was deep and cold.

"Well, I want to know… about… my love life." Nonoko said hesitantly. She was blushing.

Mikan did not pay attention to her friends. Instead, she started to wander around, examining the weird things.

For the first time, Mikan felt insecure. Ever since she entered the stall, a pair of crystal, blue eyes kept watching her every move. She knew that, somehow, her turn will come to face the creepy fortune-teller. Her brain was working fast, trying to find the way out, although it seemed so impossible right now.

'_I need to escape from here_!' she thought hard.

That was when, she saw something; the sole thing that could bring her out of there. Placed on the dusty shelf, there was a small, beautiful ruby stone. It was carved perfectly in a shape of love.

Mikan read carefully the explanation beside it.

_**...  
**_

_**DESTINY'S TELEPORTATION**_

_**…**_

_**Ever wondered where your destiny is?**_

_**….**_

_**Ever imagine of finding your true love??**_

_**…..**_

_**Ever think of the one who holds your future???**_

_**……**_

_**Touch me with your own bare hands**_

_**…..**_

_**And, I'll take you there**_

_**….**_

_**…**_

Mikan couldn't care less of those flowery words. What she knew that this particular thing will teleport her to anywhere but here.

She smirked and without hesitation, she moved her hands towards the red flaming stone slowly.

And, when Hana realized what Mikan was doing,

…

"DON'T TOUCH IT!!"

…

….

…..

It was too late…

Blurry vision of the panic Hana was fading away, replaced with a huge amount of flash, white light. Mikan closed her eyes tightly, wishing she'll land in Hawaii or maybe, Paris…

* * *

Few seconds later, 

"STAY AWAY FROM HIM!! HE'S EVIL!!!!"

"YEAH, HE BRINGS NOTHING BUT BAD LUCK!!!!"

"DON'T FRIEND WITH HIM!!!!"

"**GO AWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"**

Mikan opened her eyes in time to see thousands of black, ugly ghosts surrounding a group of kids.

"AAAAAAAAAAARRGGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!" a boy shouted.

She was taken aback when she saw the youngsters struggling to avoid the eerie evil spirits. Clearly, they were left with no choice but to run away. Even though they managed to escape, there are still few ghosts who went after them, trying to beat them as much as possible.

Mikan smiled. She found the scenery quite enjoyable. Realizing her main reason of being here, she started to observe her surrounding. Mikan's eyes were wide in shock.

She was neither in Paris nor in Hawaii. In fact, she was still in Japan. And, to be more precise, she was standing right at the same, old CENTRAL TOWN that she has just left a couple of minutes ago.

The only thing that differed is she was not in the same street as where the fortune-telling stall is. Mikan sighed softly and smirked.

"So, this is where my destiny lies, is it?? With the filthy, old ghosts??? Stupid stone…"

She looked in front of her and saw the brutal spirits were beginning to disperse. In a single moment, they vanished from sight.

This has allowed Mikan to get a perfect view of a kid in front of her. He was kneeling on the pavement, his two hands supporting him. Although he was facing downwards, Mikan could hear his soft cry. And, he was such in a miserable state that Mikan couldn't help but to feel sympathetic towards him.

The brunette looked around her. Everyone were watching the boy attentively, yet not even one of them made an effort to comfort him. Mikan stared at them disbelievingly. She began to lose her patience.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU LOOKING AT?? DON'T JUST STARE AT HIM AS THOUGH HE'S JUST AN EXHIBITION!! ARE YOU HUMAN OR NOT????"

All of them turned their attention to watch Mikan. However, neither of them made a move. Mikan sighed in depression. She realized that there was no point to confront with heartless people.

"Useless…"

Slowly, but surely, she walked towards the boy. She knelt in front of him and offered her hand to him. The kid looked up to face her. His eyes were red with tears. He, who was shocked at first, hesitated to take Mikan's hand.

But, when he saw Mikan's gentle smile, all of his doubts disappeared together with his sufferings. He instantly hugged her tight and cried out loudly, expressing all the pain that he has been enduring all this time. Mikan was unable to hold back her sadness anymore. She could feel tears started to form in her eyes.

"YOUICHIII !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Mikan heard someone shouting behind her. The boy released his hand around her waist automatically and ran towards the person. Realizing to whom the voice belongs to, Mikan rolled her eyes. She turned to find that her guess was absolutely correct. She was facing with none other than... NATSUME HYUUGA.

Surprisingly, he was wearing a worried look. And, he was knocking the boy's head softly…

KNOCK!

"Where have you been?"

KNOCK! KNOCK!

"We have been looking for you everywhere"

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

"I'll burn your ghosts if you run away again…"

Natsume was about to give him another knock when Ruka stopped him.

"He had enough, Natsume…"

"Are you okay, Sakura?"

Mikan who was watching the two attentively suddenly realized that she was still kneeling in the middle of the road. She stood up and fixed her crumpling skirt before replying to Ruka.

"Never better…"

Mikan moved her gaze from Ruka to the boy. She was aware that Natsume was glaring at her. And, unlike other ordinary girl, Mikan possessed enough courage to reply his eerie glare.

Neither of them showed any sign of white flag. Eventually, the boy tugged Natsume's uniform, thus causing him to break the eye-contact. Mikan smiled triumphantly.

"Let's go!" Natsume started to walk.

Ruka hesitated for a moment. But then, he gave a goodbye nod to Mikan and started to go after Natsume. However, the boy remained immobilize. He was staring at his feet. Natsume who was aware of this stopped walking. He gave the kid an inquiring look.

"I want her to come with us." He said slowly, while pointing at Mikan.

Natsume was startled for a split second. Ruka and the cute boy were waiting impatiently for his answer.

"Whatever…"

* * *

They went to lots of places. By now, the boy has fully-recovered from his miserable state. Mikan, who was unable to refuse the kid's request found herself stranded with the two most famous boys in the whole academy. And, this means… 

"Look! It's Natsume Hyuuga and Ruka Nogi!! They're so handsome!!!!"

"WOW!! Very charming! But, WHO THE HELL IS THAT GIRL??"

"WHAT DOES SHE THINK SHE'S DOING? WALKING WITH OUR HEROES??' "

Soon enough, Mikan has face her most dreadful moment; being the centre of attention. She received glares of death from every girl that saw her. Mikan has started to become impatient. She went after Natsume who was leading their way.

"Hyuuga! What do you think you're doing??"

Natsume smirked. "I don't know you're that blind, moron. Obviously, I'm walking."

Mikan closed her eyes, trying to control her anger.

"I can see that, IDIOT!" Mikan snarled. "And, I'm not that moron to realize that every time you walk, you purposely choose the main street, where there are lots of Alice students. Do I need to remind you that 'small streets' still exist?"

"No, thanks. I'm fully aware of that. I was just thinking to give you a special attention from the crowd." Natsume sneered.

Mikan eyed him suspiciously. "You did this intentionally. I should have known the famous Black Cat won't go that easy on people."

"I let you join us because Youichii kept insisting on. However, that doesn't guarantee you a nice, free-of-charge trip. Everything has a price, No-star! And your price for coming with us, is a lifetime hatred from the girls of Alice Academy. Let's us see how a troublemaker like you could overcome this..." Natsume smirked evilly.

Ruka who was unaware of their arguments reminded them.

"Let's go, guys! The last bus was about to leave."

Mikan glared furiously at the smirking Natsume before started to follow Ruka and Youichii. They were on their way to the bus stop when it began to rain.

Mikan who was walking ahead of the boys stopped abruptly. She stared at the sky with her wide eyes. Thunderclouds were approaching, covering the whole city.

"It's going to rain heavily." She said softly.

Ruka gave Mikan a peculiar look. "We know that, Sakura. And, you should know, if we don't continue walking, the bus will leave us."

Mikan looked at Ruka straight in the eyes. "Don't you think we should find a shelter first?"

"The bus is going to be the perfect shelter for us. Now, let's go!" He started to walk faster towards the bus with Youichii who was sneezing badly.

But, Mikan did not move at all. Natsume walked past Mikan and glanced at her. He realized that there was something wrong in Mikan's eyes; something different. It was…

Natsume stopped suddenly. He was just a few feet away from the bus. He turned around. Mikan Sakura was nowhere to be found. Meanwhile, the bus started to move.

The rain was pouring down heavily. There was a flash of lightning followed by a loud thunder. Natsume sighed in exasperation.

Slowly, he started to walk away from the last bus. He headed back towards the deserted Central Town.

****

****

****

**_"MORON GIRL!!!"_**

* * *

_**Youichii : Where did Mikan go?? I want her back! NOW!!!**_

_**Ruka : And, where is this Natsume?? You're going to miss the bus!**_

_**Mysticlife-fh : Well, just find it all out on the next chapter! I need your comments, guys!! Thanx : - )**_

* * *


	9. Astraphobic

* * *

. 

_**Mysticlife-fh : Here's the new chapter! Enjoy and don't forget to R&R my other story as well - THE LOST MEMOIR**_

_**Mikan : Natsume Hyuuga! You've no idea how much I loathe you!!!**_

_**Natsume : Tsk. Whatever...**_

_**  
**_

* * *

_  
_   
_Previous chapter :_

_Mikan did not move at all. Natsume walked past Mikan and glanced at her. He realized that there was something wrong in Mikan's eyes; something different. It was…_

_Natsume stopped suddenly. He was just a few feet away from the bus. He turned around. Mikan Sakura was nowhere to be found. Meanwhile, the bus started to move._

_He started to walk away from the bus. He was heading back towards the Central Town._

"_**MORON GIRL!!!"**_

_**  
**_

* * *

_**  
**_

At Alice Academy…

The thunderstorm was getting worse. Meanwhile, Leo kept staring at the school ground worriedly.

"Any problem, Leo?"

Leo sighed deeply.

"Not me. But, she…"

_**  
**_

* * *

. 

Central Town

Natsume was walking calmly at the desolated street despite the heavy rain. But, his eyes were working restlessly, trying to locate someone.

While searching, he recalled Mikan's strange words just now…

_**  
**_

_**flashback starts-**_

_**  
**_

"_It's going to rain heavily."_

"_Don't you think we should find a shelter first?"_

_**  
**_

_**flashback ends-**_

_**  
**_

"Idiot, who'll understand if you just saying that?"

Natsume grunted.

"And, why am I even here?" Natsume scolded himself.

That was when he saw a figure of a girl at the far end of the corridor. She was sitting on the floor, hugging her knees tightly. Realizing who she was, Natsume approached her slowly.

Her face was concealed, but he knew exactly who the brunette was. It was Mikan Sakura. She was shivering madly. And, her eyes were closed tightly.

_**  
**_

Meanwhile, Mikan was nearly freezing. She had no option but to calm herself down.

_**  
**_

"OK… OK… I- It'll be f-f-fine. Just think of s-s-something warm…" she said, her eyes were still closed.

"Let s-s-see… how about… VOLCANOES! No… that's too h-h-hot! I'll get burnt." Mikan shook her head.

Mikan was still unaware of Natsume's presence. He was standing few meters from her. It seemed like watching Mikan's method of warming herself has amused him somehow.

"Then… a n-n-nice hot chocolate! Yup, that w-w-will do. With a c-c-cheese cake." Mikan spoke, still trembling.

_**  
**_

_**KREUKKKK!!!!**_

_**  
**_

Mikan touched her stomach that was rumbling with hunger.

"Eeeerggh… I'm h-h-hungry!! Oh, s-s-shit! W-w-what else?" she thought hardly.

"G-g-got it!" Mikan sat straight abruptly.

_**  
**_

"**F-F-F-FIRE!**! A warm, s-s-small fire." She said, suppressing a small smile.

Natsume smirked. A brilliant idea just crossed his mind. Quietly, he conjured a small flame right in front of Mikan. She was still closing her eyes.

"It's working!" Mikan said softly, enjoying the warmth feeling. Natsume smiled viciously. But then, Mikan frowned suddenly. Clearly, the genius Mikan has sensed something wrong.

_**  
**_

'_Impossible… this fire… UNLESS…!'_

_**  
**_

Natsume who noticed Mikan's sudden change increased his power, thus causing the flame to burn even brighter. Mikan opened her eyes in time to see a huge amount of fire just a few centimeters away from the tip of her nose. Her eyes were wide in shock.

Mikan stood up that instant to back away from the fiery fire. Her heart was thumping hardly. It took Mikan just a few seconds to come up with a name. _**NATSUME HYUUGA**_

She looked directly at the good-looking boy in front of her. Natsume was standing coolly with hands in the pockets. And, he was smirking at Mikan.

'_This girl is pretty quick…"_

"How was it?? I thought I had to burn you up to make you realize I'm here."

_**  
**_

Mikan gave Natsume a deadly glare.

"What the hell-"

Unfortunately, Mikan was unable to finish her words. At the precise time, a flash of lightning struck the stall nearby. Mikan's eyes were wide in terror. She quickly squatted down, her hands covering her ears and her eyes were closed.

_**  
**_

_**DUMMM!!!!**_

_**  
**_

Mikan tightened her hands to her ears when she heard the loud thunder. Despite the coldness, Mikan sweated. And, she was trembling all over her body. Without her realizing it, Mikan has accidentally nullified Natsume's alice, thus leaving them in total darkness.

"Just shut your big fat mouth..." Natsume said monotonously.

Mikan was so scared that she made no effort to reply Natsume. She was still facing the ground.

"And… stop _**nullifying**_ my alice." he spoke, insisting on the word 'nullifying'.

This time, Mikan looked up at Natsume in surprise. She opened her mouth to ask.

"How-"

_**DUMMM!!!!**_

_**  
**_

Mikan closed her eyes tightly again. Her heart was pounding. She was feeling slightly dizzy, and she was still shaking. Natsume remained in his position few feets away from Mikan, but he conjured a small fire between them to light up the surrounding.

Mikan was so frightened that she could not even utter a word, while Natsume found it unnecessary to talk. He just stared blankly at the dark sky outside.

_**  
**_

They went silent until almost half an hour later when the rain nearly stopped. Finally, Mikan was courageous enough to speak.

"That was way fast than I expected. I bet you've known my alice a long time ago…"

Natsume did not look at Mikan, but he replied.

"It's too easy. Just assigned a few students to test their alice on you whether it's working or not and I've got my answer."

That instant, Mikan remembered the weird incident where Mochu kept staring at her.

'_He must be using his alice on me at that time… How could I miss such obvious thing? Idiot!'_

Seeing Mikan who was in a deep thinking, Natsume smirked triumphantly. Mikan who definitely hate to lose, especially to him, found no reason to give up.

_**  
**_

"It doesn't matter now." Mikan shrugged and smiled calmly as though it was nothing to her.

"What's most important is…" Mikan's innocent smile turned into a smirk.

"…What – the – hell – are – you – doing - here ?" she raised one of her eye-brows at Natsume, teasing him.

Natsume stopped smirking at the heard of Mikan's question. He glared at the shrewd Mikan. Instead of replying Mikan's remark, he remained speechless. He stood up slowly and started to walk away.

Mikan was surprised by Natsume's unexpected action. But she regained her consciousness in no time. She stood up as well and followed Natsume.

_**  
**_

"What's up, Hyuuga? Running from something?? Don't tell me you're scared???" Mikan sneered.

Natsume smirked.

"Probably you're too blind to realize the rain has stopped. All I want right now is to return to my room. And, don't worry. I'm not scared of anything, _unlike you_…"

Mikan stopped walking. She was glaring at Natsume.

"What do you mean?" she asked coldly.

Natsume turned to face the pretty girl.

"Well, if you really want to know why I'm here, it's because I want to make sure."

"I want to make sure… that I'm correct." He said sharply.

Natsume shot Mikan a nasty grin.

"ASTRAPHOBIC. Fear of lightning and thunder. _That_ is your weakness, isn't it?? What a pity it is for a troublemaker like you to possess such disadvantage." Natsume sneered.

_**  
**_

For unknown reason, Natsume had been loathing the brunette – everything about her – from her fair face till her calmness attitude. The Black Cat was perfectly sure that in a few seconds, Mikan will finally lose her temper and got mad at him.

_**  
**_

How very wrong he was.

_**  
**_

Instead of being furious, Mikan's lips formed a small smile. Mikan sighed softly. She placed both her hands on her waist and stared disbelievingly at Natsume.

"I don't get it." Mikan said calmly, shaking her head slowly.

"You're always like that, aren't you?? Acting like you're an evil person while you're not."

Natsume's level of shockness began to decrease slowly, replaced with an emotion of anger. Mikan continued.

"I really don't understa-"

"Then don't!" Natsume snapped. Aura of fire started to erupt from his body.

"No one ask you to do that." He said irritably. "And, don't talk like you've known me. You've got no idea who am I."

Mikan was startled for a while. Unlike Ruka, Natsume was not shouting at her. Yet, she could feel the coldness hidden behind the voice.

_**  
**_

"MIKAN!!!"

Both of them simultaneously turned their head towards the owner of the voice. It was Leo. He was panting slightly.

"Leo…" Mikan walked towards her closest friend.

"I've been worrying about you. I thought you'll be here…" he said, in a low, worried voice.

Mikan smiled at Leo, thanking him silently. Leo glanced at Natsume.

"Well, shall we go then?" He asked Mikan.

Mikan shrugged. Leo assumed that as a 'YES' and walked past Natsume without even looking at him. Mikan started to walk, following Leo. But, the brunette stopped suddenly in front of Natsume.

Clearly, Mikan was unaffected of his anger aura. She was neither smiling nor being angry.

"For whatever it is, thank you." She said as calm as ever.

"And…" Mikan's voice broke into a whisper. "…I suggest you to be more cautious with the enemies during your mission. Help is not always there for you…" she smirked.

The raven-haired boy was too shocked to speak. Mikan turned away and went after Leo. Few minutes later, the firecaster continued walking, but his brain was working fast.

'_She knew precisely what has occurred during my mission. So, there's no doubt that she is… one of us…'_

Suddenly, Natsume recalled his previous mission where he fought with the man who possessed the ice-alice. He was saved from being stabbed with the sharp ice due to…

'_...something shimmering around me. It must be her nullifying alice. But, why would a prankster like her wants to be used by the academy?? It doesn't make sense…'_

Natsume shook his head vigorously and cleared his troubled mind.

_**  
**_

* * *

_**  
**_

Mikan has just arrived at the dormitories. She decided to skip dinner and went straight to her room. She went directly to take a bath and freshened herself up. When she returned to her attic, her instinct sensed something peculiar. But, she made no effort to find the source.

She landed herself on the comfy bed and closed her eyes, releasing the tiredness she felt. Not even a few minutes later, Mikan was interrupted.

_**  
**_

_**KNOCK! KNOCK!**_

_**  
**_

Mikan leapt out of bed instantly and went to open the door. It was Anna and Nonoko.

"Oh, you're finally here!" Anna said, sounding relieved.

"Where have you been? We searched for you everywhere!" Nonoko asked, looking concerned.

Mikan smiled at her friends.

"I'm sorry to make you worry, but I'm fine. I'll explain to you later. I've a guest right now." She said casually.

The girls peered through the opened door to search for Mikan's guest, but she blocked their view completely. They sighed in disappointment and walked away.

Mikan closed the door firmly and walked towards the window, staring blankly at the dark sky. She closed her eyes, enjoying the chilly wind outside.

"Until when are you going to keep hiding?" Mikan spoke softly.

_**  
**_

In a second, few tiles at the rooftop above Mikan moved apart, and a girl entered through the gap. She landed with a small thud behind Mikan.

The girl stared at Mikan calmly. She spoke rather stiffly.

"Impressive. You sensed my presence in less than five minutes."

Mikan looked over her shoulder and said cheerfully.

"Not really. Usually, it takes me 60 seconds to detect unwanted guest."

Mikan turned and smiled at the familiar face in front of her.

_**  
**_

* * *

_**  
**_

_**Mikan : Wow, what a cool way to enter.. The roof... I wonder how she did it.**_

_**Mysticlife-fh : Aah, for her, nothing's impossible. **_

_**Jinno : HAHAHA... I'll appear in the next ch!!! **_

_**Mikan : Ready for another battle, Jin-Jin?? Remember to leave your comments, guys!!!!!!**_

* * *

_**  
**_


	10. Frenzy Fangirls

* * *

. 

**_Mysticlife-fh : Hey, guys!! Thanks for all the reviews!! I appreciate them very, very much!!!_**

_**Leo : Yup! Keep supporting!!! **_

_**Mikan : Leo, tell me... Is there someone that you like??**_

_**Leo : Err... N-No!! Definitely no! Cool guy like me don't need those things... **_

_**Mikan : Really?? Btw, it's just a simple question, Leo. You don't need to sweat that badly...**_

_**Leo : I'M N-NOT!!!**_

._  
_

* * *

- 

"Imai Hotaru…" Mikan said, recognizing her classmate.

"So, you're the one who's spying on me. Then, I believe this little thing belongs to you." The brunette approached Hotaru and gave her a tiny, robotic fly that appears to be one of Hotaru's creations.

The Ice Queen remembered planting the bug in Mikan's attic a few weeks ago. "No wonder it doesn't work. You've found it."

Mikan smiled. "So, tell me. Is your investigation making progress? Any good news for me?"

"Good enough for me to know the reason why you come here."

Mikan's heart skipped a beat. Yet, she remained expressionless. "And, what are you going to do about it?"

"Nothing." She answered simply. Mikan stared at the girl in disbelief.

The violet-eyed girl looked at Mikan intently. "I don't believe you would do such thing."

"It seems like you have faith on me more than I do. But, I'm sorry I have no answer for that." the brunette said slowly.

Mikan has found Hotaru just as interesting as Hotaru found her. But, before the conversation could go any further, the door was flung open roughly...

-

"Mikan! We haven't finished…-" Leo was speechless when his eyes met the stunning black-haired girl.

Realizing he was disturbing them, Leo turned to walk away of the room. "I- I- I'll just go…"

"Don't bother." Hotaru said, stopping him. She was halfway from the door when she spoke calmly.

"I hope that I don't place my trust in the wrong person. But, if I did, I have no choice but to reveal your true self."

When Hotaru has left, Leo cornered his best friend.

"Mikan, who is she?" he asked interestingly.

Instead of answering him, Mikan yawned. She uttered a question back.

"What are you doing here? If you want to repeat your ridiculous theory again, I've no time for that."

Mikan's voice was as cold as ice. Leo, whose mind was still thinking of the beautiful violet-eyed girl, jerked awake suddenly when he sensed Mikan's stiffness.

"Ooh, that's an insult, Mikan! You don't believe it doesn't mean that the theory is not true." Leo said, suppressing a sly smile. "In fact, if you let me…-"

The brown-haired boy who was just about to start explaining again stopped abruptly when Mikan gave him a furious glare.

"If you have time to think about the absurd thing, why don't you use the powerful brain of yours to help me out with the maniac fan girls?" Mikan asked angrily.

Leo smirked at Mikan's remark. "C'mon Mikan, I thought the girls are just a piece of cake for you. Surely, you can escape easily."

"Easy for you to say!" Mikan snapped. "I don't care if it concerns a group of girls. But, the whole school? This is all because of that stupid, ugly…-."

"I wonder why is it that every time it's about the boy, you sort of lose your temper easily." Leo interrupted, unaware of Mikan's level of anger that was increasing rapidly. "I mean, you're not the hot-blooded t…-

"Out…" Mikan said, in a low, stern voice.

"M- M- Mikan…"Leo sweat-dropped. Clearly, he has hit the girl's nerve.

"I said…** OUTTTTTT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!**"

-

As quick as a flash, Leo disappeared from sight. He arrived in his room in just a few seconds.

"Phew, I've never seen Mikan this angry before. This boy… Mikan must really hate him."

Leo's eyes glinted suddenly. His lips formed a smirk.

"Or…"

-

* * *

- 

The next morning…

Leo was preparing for school. He was almost ready when someone knocked his door. His mouth fell open in horror when he saw Mikan Sakura was standing in front of his room.

"M- Mikan! What are you doing here?" Leo asked in a quivering voice.

He took a few deep breaths before start talking. "Look, about yesterday-"

"Are you done?" Mikan interrupted.

"Yeah, I'm… WHAT?" He found Mikan's question was peculiar.

Much to his surprise, Mikan smiled. "Well, if you're ready, let's go to school then!"

-

They were on their way to the school. Meanwhile, Leo was still feeling dumbfounded with Mikan's sudden change.

"You look a bit strange today, Leo" Mikan said calmly.

Leo who was frowning turned to face Mikan. "It's you who are acting weird. You've never come to my place before. It's always the other way round."

Mikan shrugged. "There's nothing wrong with asking my best friend to go to school together."

Leo stopped walking suddenly. He was looking suspiciously at Mikan.

"Now, that's absolutely weird! We've never admitted each other as best friends, remember?? And, you've never cool down this fast! The last time you were angry at me, we did not talk for a week!!!" Leo blurted out his thought.

Mikan smiled. "Chill, Leo! People change. That was years ago. You don't expect me to be the same my entire life, do you?"

Leo opened his mouth to answer but a noisy sound above them drew his attention. He looked upwards at the sky and saw a pink-coloured helicopter flying past them.

"What is the helicopter doing here?" he enquired Mikan.

The brunette shrugged and spoke rather lazily. "No idea. Searching for someone, maybe..."

Mikan walked past Leo. But, instead of going straight, she entered the forest.

"Mikan, are you sick or something? Cause this is the right way." Leo said, while pointing at the correct path.

"I'm still sane, Leo. I just want to use this path today." She spoke coolly.

"Why? It's a long way there. And students rarely use it." He felt awkward.

"No particular reason. It's just a little bit quieter, and desolated."

"Desolated?" Leo gasped suddenly and covered his body with his both hands, as if protecting himself. He gave Mikan a doubtful look.

"WHAT'S YOUR INTENTION, MIKAN? I'M STILL A VIRGIN, YOU KNOW!" he pretended to be insecure.

Mikan who was startled at first rolled her eyes in disgust.

"Shut it off, Leo!! You possess nothing that could attract even a molester."

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!"

"Wow! You're acting like a pervert, Mikan!! Now, let's go. You're not mad at me. This must be my lucky day!!" he said happily.

Mikan who was walking behind him smirked and muttered quietly, "Yup, your lucky day…"

-

They were walking halfway through the jungle when they came across a little girl. When she saw Mikan, her eyes were wide in shock. She stared at Mikan intently.

"Do you know her?" Leo, who was looking at the elementary school girl, questioned Mikan.

Mikan suppressed a sly smile. "Nope, but she does know me."

They continued walking, but Leo's eyes were fixed on the little girl. Suddenly, she opened her mouth bigly.

-

**"SHE IS HERE! MIKAN SAKURA IS HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"**

**- **

The girl, who obviously possessed the alice of voice magnification used her power so greatly that her voice could be heard the entire Alice Academy. As for Leo, his eardrums nearly broke due to the alice. Mikan who nullified the alice on time seemed to be amused.

In no time, the pink helicopter appeared exactly above them. Mikan folded her arms and stared at the sky.

"Looks like they've found what they're looking for!" she said coolly.

Leo who just recovered from the ear pain finally realized the situation. He glared angrily at Mikan who deceived him. He was so angry he could hardly speak.

"H-HOW DARE YOU…!-"

Mikan smiled wickedly. "Want some piece of advice, buddy? R-U-N!"

The brunette broke into a run. Leo had no choice but to go after her. Despite their crucial situation, Leo managed to shout at Mikan.

"YOU PLAN FOR THIS TO HAPPEN!! YOU WANT ME TO BE INVOLVED IN THIS, CAUSE YOU'RE STILL MAD AT ME!!!! HOW DARE YOU!!!!"

Mikan who was still running shouted back. She was laughing.

"HA! SERVES YOU RIGHT!!! YOU CAN'T COMPLAIN!! IT'S YOU WHO REFUSED TO HELP ME! SO I'M DOING IT MY WAY!! AND… YES!!! I'M DEFINITELY STILL MAD AT YOU!!!"

Behind them, they were hundreds of girls from all ages running after Mikan.

"SAKURA, YOU BITCH!!" they shouted.

"Ooh… an excellent choice of words." she said calmly. But inwardly, she was cursing Hyuuga for the 101th time.

Mikan's instinct told her to look behind her. She turned in time to see a moving tree was trying to catch her. Apparently, all of the trees are being controlled by a one of the girls' alice. It is extremely difficult to avoid being caught. However, for Mikan, nothing is impossible.

She dodged and shunned all the attack of the trees easily with her swift movement. Moreover, her nullifying alice helped her a lot in escaping. She tried to warn her best friend of the moving tree.

"HEY, LEO! WATCH OUT FOR-"

"AAAARGGGHHH!!!!!!"

It seemed like she was a little too late as Leo has already been caught by the tree. Mikan sighed in depression.

"TOLD YA!" Mikan stared at the struggled Leo.

"HELP ME!!!" he shouted at the brunette.

Instead of helping Leo out, Mikan just stood there, her hands placed on her waist. And, she was smiling.

"WHAT'S THE MATTER, LEO?? DIDN'T YOU SAY THE GIRLS ARE JUST A PIECE OF CAKE FOR YOU??"

Leo who was trying to release himself from the grasp of the tree's branch looked up at Mikan suddenly. He knew what Mikan was about to do. His eyes were wide in terror.

"NO! MIKAN, DON'T DO IT!!!"

Slowly, Mikan backed away from him. Her lips were still forming a smirk.

"YOU'VE KNOWN ME FOR 10 YEARS, LEO. HOW COULD YOU POSSIBLY THINK THAT I'LL FORGIVE YOU THERE AND THEN, JUST LIKE THAT?"

The frenzy fan girls were approaching them. Mikan gave a last graceful bow to Leo before disappearing from sight.

"ENJOY! I'LL SEE YOU AT DINNER!!"

"MIKAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!!"

-

Sakura has finally arrived at the main door to the academic building. Unfortunately, the entrance was overly-packed with lots of fan girls who were trying to catch Mikan. They were holding banners and boards showing pictures of Mikan whose face being scribbled with vulgar words. There are some pictures were badly-drawn that it was impossible to tell whose face it is.

"What is this?? Some kind of protests?? Losers…" Mikan was observing them closely.

That was when she saw Jinno entered the building. He made no effort to stop the girls. Instead, he looked as though he was enjoying the moment. And, he was smiling as well.

"Jin-Jin! Maniac old gay…" Mikan cursed under the breath. Then, Mikan realized something.

"OI, SHIT! IT'S JIN-JIN'S CLASS NOW!!" She said, while clapping a hand to her forehead.

She quickly darted towards behind the school building. Luckily, none of the girls were there. Her class was on the 3rd floor. Mikan smiled and looked calmly at the building. There were lots of huge trees near the building.

"Oh, I haven't done this for such a long time…"

She closed her eyes slowly and just by using her remaining senses, she jumped gracefully from the nearest tree to a higher tree. And when she arrived at the highest tree, she mustered all the energy she has and made a perfect, splendid jump directly towards the opened window of her class.

She opened her eyes slowly and the first thing she saw was...

...a pair of crimson eyes.

"BOO…!" he said slowly.

Mikan was so shocked that she lost her balance and nearly fell down to the ground back. But, someone grabbed her hand on time.

"Looks like you're so desperate to enter the class that you choose this entrance." Natsume sneered.

Mikan quickly shoved away the Black Cat's hand and landed softly on the floor of her class. She turned to face Natsume.

"Not at all." Mikan smiled. "As a matter of fact, I'm quite enjoying your fan girls' accompany, thanks to you. However, they're just nothing but fools. No wonder they worship you."

"Get use to it, moron girl! Cause I'm gonna make your life here like hell!" he smirked.

"Well, don't worry. If I have to, I'll bring you with me…" Mikan suppressed an evil smile.

-

Looked like Mikan made it in time as few seconds later, Mr. Jinno entered the class. They returned to their seats and this marked the start of a dull, boring lesson.

Mikan who found it unnecessary to listen to Jin-Jin's voice started to recall her conversation with Leo last night.

-

**Flashback starts---**

_Mikan and Leo were on their way back to the dormitories after Leo came to find Mikan at the Central Town. Mikan had fully-recovered from her phobia of lightning._

_"Tell me again what happened just now…" Leo asked eagerly._

_Mikan glared at Leo. "How many times do you want me to repeat it?? It's nothing important!! Besides, it's better if you help me to think how to deal with the fan girls…"_

_Suddenly, Leo snapped his fingers. "I KNOW IT!!!"_

_Mikan, who thought Leo has found a way to help her out, smiled brightly. "What is it??"_

_"He is your destiny!" The black-eyed boy exclaimed happily._

_The brunette was flabbergasted. She was trying to find a connection between the words 'fan girls' and 'destiny' but with no avail. She realized that this had nothing to do with the fan girls._

_"What the hell are you saying, Leo?"_

_Leo was smiling contently. "Look, this is my theory. If you didn't teleport to that place, you won't meet the 'ghost' kid."_

_"His name is Youichii!" Mikan snapped. She was starting to get bored with the topic._

_"Right. And, if you didn't meet 'Yo-Yo', you won't come across Hyuuga and if that didn't occur, you won't be left with him at the Central Town!! So, it's crystal clear that he is your destiny stated by the stone!!" Leo waited for Mikan's reaction._

_"What do you think?" he asked impatiently._

_"HAHAHAHAHAHAHHA!!!!" the brunette laughed loudly after a few seconds of silence._

_Leo was gaping at Mikan. "WHAT??"_

_Mikan rolled her eyes. "Your theory is too long, too many 'IF's and… totally irrational!!"_

_The girl sighed. "Let's see… the thingy stated that it'll teleport me straight to my destiny. And, the first thing I saw were ghosts, hundreds of them. You don't expect those ghosts to be my destiny, do you?? It's nonsense!! I just used it to escape from the eerie fortune teller. That's it!" Mikan concluded the topic._

_She walked past Leo. "Tch… destiny" Mikan snorted._

_"I got it. I really got it…" he said quietly._

_MIkan stopped and turned to face the handsome boy. "Pardon?"_

_"I was thinking that it is strange a genius like you couldn't figure out this simple theory. It's impossible! But then, I realized it. You've given a thought about this before! You've came up with the same theory as I do. The only difference is, you refuse to admit it. You're in the state of denial, Mikan!"_

_Mikan's lips formed a smile. "Say what you want, Leo. But it won't change anything. You know I don't believe in such thing. All those lovey-dovey thingy don't exist in my life."_

_Leo smiled back.. "Don't be too sure, Mikan…"_

**Flashback ends---**

**-**

"Crap!" Mikan said in a low-tone voice, referring to Leo's theory.

or she thought she is…

"MIKAN SAKURA!! WHAT DID YOU SAY JUST NOW??"

The brunette raised her head quickly and her eyes met Mr Jinno, who was looking directly at her. So were all of her classmates. The class has gone completely silent.

_'Did I say it out loud??'_

"Do you have any problem with my equation, Sakura?? Or, is your low IQ is too slow to catch up with my lesson? If that's so, I'm afraid I can't help you as your brain is beyond damaged." He sneered.

_'Oh, that's great!! Jin-Jin is all I need to make my day perfect!!!'_ Mikan rolled her eyes.

"SAKURA!!!" Jinno called, in a high-pitched voice.

For the first time, Mikan looked at the equation written by Jinno at the board. Her brain was working fast.

_'This equation... it's...'_

"It's… It's really a crap!!" she said, surprisingly.

-

* * *

______________________

-_______________________________  
_

_______________________________****__Mysticlife-fh : Please forgive me if I take such a long time to update... My college life is like HELL!_

_______________________________****__Hotaru : Yeah, but I'll make sure she update this as soon as she is free... Don't forget I still have my BAKA GUN.._

_______________________________****__Mikan : For the first time, I'm supporting you, Imai!!_

_______________________________****__Leo : Yes!! Go, Hotaru!! GO!!_

_______________________________****__Mikan : Why are you so excited, Leo???_

* * *


	11. Her Worst Memory

* * *

_**Mysticlife-fh : Ooh,, I'M SOOOORRRRRRYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!**_

_**Mikan : HOW DARE YOU?? ABANDON ME FOR MONTHS!!!!**_

_**Mysticlife-fh : Please,, forgive me. Natsume, Ruka and Sumire... All of them have punished me..**_

_**Mikan : But, I haven't... (wearing a devil smile)**_

_**Mysticlife-fh : NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!**_

* * *

: 

"Crap!" Mikan said in a low-tone voice,

. 

or…

she thought she is…

. 

"MIKAN SAKURA!!"

The brunette raised her head quickly and her eyes met Mr Jinno, who was looking directly at her. So were all of her classmates. The class has gone completely silent.

. 

'_Did I say it out loud??"_

. 

"Do you have any problem with my equation, Sakura?? Or, is your low IQ is too slow to catch up with my lesson? If that's so, I'm afraid I can't help you as your brain is beyond damaged." He sneered.

. 

"_Oh, that's great!! Jin-Jin is all I need to make my day perfect!!!"_Mikan rolled her eyes.

. 

"SAKURA!!!" Jinno called, in a high-pitched voice.

For the first time, Mikan looked at the equation written by Jinno at the board. She noticed something was wrong with the solution.

. 

"It's… It's really a crap!!" she said, referring to the equations.

. 

"MIND YOUR TONGUE!!!!!" Jinno's anger has risen. Never before, in his entire life, anyone criticize his teaching, let alone a student.

Mikan smiled and placed her fingers under her chin. Ignoring the consequences she might have to face, she continued talking.

. . 

"Are you trying to fail us, Sir?? Your solution, all of it, it's too complex for us to understand."

Jinno smirked.

"Well, can't blame you for your worthless mind, Miss Sakura! If everyone else in the class are able to receive my so-called complex method, isn't it clear enough whose brain is problematic?"

. 

Nonoko and Anna were praying hardly that Mikan would stop arguing with the teacher and stay silent.

Unfortunately, knowing Mikan…

. 

"Even if they do have problems and tell you about it, will you ever listen, sir?" she spoke loudly.

.. 

That's it…

. 

With Mikan's stubbornness and Mr Jinno's cruelty, everyone was sure this will not going to be a good ending.

. 

Mr. Jinno's body was shaking with anger.

"OUT!!!!" he bellowed, ordering Mikan.

The students were watching Mikan's reaction intently. As always, she was emotionless. Slowly, she stood up and walk towards the front of the class.

. 

Unknown to anyone, deep inside, Mikan was struggling hard to hold back her anger. She clutched her fist tightly.

'_ORDERS! THAT'S ALL THE ADULTS ARE CAPABLE OF!! I'M TOTALLY SICK OF IT!!!"_

. 

However, Mikan did not go straight to the door. She stopped exactly in front of the board.

"MISS SAKURA! WHAT ARE YOU DOING??" Jinno shouted.

But Mikan made no effort to answer him. She was looking at Jinno's solution on the board.

. 

Sumire who was watching her smirked. "Mikan Sakura, you're really a rebellious girl…"

The class was as quiet as a graveyard. Everyone was watching Jinno's red face and Mikan's sudden muteness. The students were in shock when they saw Jinno raising his wand.

'_Oh No!!! He wants to use his alice on Mikan!!!" _ Yuu shook his head in disbelief.

Some of the girls closed their eyes, afraid of what's going to happen.

. 

Mr. Jinno was just about to electrify the girl when she suddenly moved her hand towards the board. The sensei stopped abruptly. He looked peculiarly at Mikan.

Meanwhile, Mikan was writing something on the board quickly. Her classmates were curious to know what she was doing. In less than a minute, Mikan finished and stood back to allow her friends to see what was on the board.

. 

Murmurs started to arise. Everyone were looking at the board. It seemed clear that Mikan has written a simpler and more understandable equation compared to Jinno's. Moreover, she only took a quarter of the space on the board while the rest is conquered with Mr. Jinno's long, complicated method.

"Eih, aren't Mikan lousy in math?" a student asked his friend. As most of the students were watching Mikan admirably, Natsume was not surprised at all…

'Finally, you're showing your true self.'

. 

"Won't this be easier, sir?" Mikan asked politely.

Mr Jinno whose face began to redden, has lost his words.

Slowly, she bowed and walked out of the class.

. 

A boy whose eyes were still on the opened door said to his friends, "Well, she is quite troublesome sometimes. But, you can never deny that she has a style."

. 

Few weeks later…

. . 

Natsume Hyuuga was running in an extreme speed, ignoring the stares and glares from everyone. He stopped suddenly as he came across a dark passageway.

Slightly panting, he tried to recall seeing this place, but with no avail.

'_Persona might fail to find me if I hide in here…' _he smirked.

Slowly, he entered the deserted corridor. Curiousity arose in Natsume as he walked deeper and deeper. Who knows, he might find her here…

. 

Minutes passed, yet he found nothing that interests him. It was just a desolated passageway. And, it seemed impossible that she would be here as well.

Natsume was just about to give up and return to his room when he heard something…

. 

He barely heard it, but he was sure of it. There's something at the end of the passageway. Without any hesitation, he walked cautiously towards the sound.

As he walked, the sound became louder and louder. And, by the time he arrived in front the door separating him from the source, Natsume figured out what it was.

. 

"Music?? Why would someone playing music in this creepy alleyway?" He questioned himself.

Resisting himself from opening the door, he leaned on it and listened intently to the song being played.

The song was undeniably beautiful, and yet, he felt gloominess began to surround him.

The more he listened to the music, the more despair he felt. He tried to shut his ears, but the music was so powerful that it penetrated right into his brain. There was no way he could escape.

. 

Suddenly, flashes of the people he loved appeared in his mind.

. 

**FLASH**

. 

_**A black-haired man whom he hasn't met for 5 years…**_

"_**Natsume, father is going to work. Take care of Aoi, will you?" **_

_**A young, cute girl whose whereabouts is unknown…**_

"_**Brother, thank you for the ice-cream! Aoi love you!!"**_

_**An enourmous flame, a burnt down village,.. the event that changes his destiny forever…**_

. 

**FLASH ENDS**

. 

Without him realizing it, tears were flowing down his cheek.

As sudden as it appeared, the vision vanish the instant the music stopped. Natsume, who was aware of it, realized that this has something to do with the song.

Unable to resist anymore, he placed his hand on the doorknob and pushed open the door slowly.

From the small gap, he saw a girl was crying softly; he couldn't tell who she was as her hands were covering her face. She was sitting in front an antique piano.

. 

An antique piano…

Then, he remembered something…

. 

**FLASHBACK**

. 

_Ruka and Natsume were resting at the school ground. Natsume looked as though he had some problems. However, no matter how many times Ruka tried, Natsume won't tell him a single word. _

_Ruka sighed as a sign of surrender. _

"_All right, all right. I won't push you. But, I hope that someday you'll come across the antique piano." Ruka said quietly._

_Natsume who nearly dozed off opened his eyes, "Antique piano? And what am I going to do with that junk?"_

_Ruka eyed Natsume, "Don't you know? The antique piano is not an ordinary thing… It could bring up the hidden emotion in you and express it out. Once you play it, you won't be able to lie about your feelings anymore."_

_Natsume smiled, "Do you really expect me to play a piano, Ruka?"_

_Surprisingly, Ruka smiled. "Unfortunately Natsume, This piano will not only affected the player, but also anyone who heard the song being played." _

. 

**FLASHBACK ENDS**

. 

'_So, this is the so-called emotion piano. This is the thing that caused me to remember my past. Shit...'_

Natsume was thinking hard, his eyes were set upon the unknown girl, whose face was still being concealed.

If he was recalling his sad moment, then, the girl was remembering hers too.

. 

But… who is she?

As though answering his question, the young girl removed her hands to wipe her tears.

. 

Natsume's eyes were wide in shock. He couldn't believe his own eyes. She was the last person that he thought would cry in this school.

. 

It can't possibly be her. It can't be…

. 

"**MIKAN SAKURA**?"

Natsume said loudly while he was on his way to the dormitory. He was still finding it difficult to accept the truth.

"Sakura, crying?? Is this the end of the world?" Natsume asked unbelievably.

"How could the troublemaker, eye-sore, rude, arrogant Sakura is crying?" He kept talking to himself.

Natsume shook his head, _"It's not my problem, anyway. But… what is her sad memory that could make her cry this hard?"_

. 

Back at the room…

. 

Mikan was still sobbing hardly. After a few years, she failed to hold back her tears anymore. All she wanted to do right now, is to cry… to pour out all her pain and suffer that she has kept all this years…

In her mind right now, there was only a sole person.

The person so much important to her…

She spoke with trembling voice,

. 

"Grandfather, how could you left me alone…"

.

* * *

_**Mysticlife-fh : Guys, my deep apologize for taking months to update. Sob.. sob..**_

_**Mikan : Oh, c'mon! Do forgive her, will ya! Life as a medic student isn't easy, you know... I'm supporting you, mysticlife-fh!!!**_

_**Mysticlife-fh : Yeah, and you said that after you have cause me severe injuries... Please make me feel better by Reviewing..,,**_

* * *

. 


	12. Does Love Still Exist?

* * *

**_Mikan : I've returned!! With more story about my past... Can't wait to tell you, guys.._**

**_Mysticlife-fh : Thanx for your support all this time! Keep R&R..._**

* * *

. 

**IN PREVIOUS ****CHAPTER :**

_**In her mind right now, there was only a sole person.**_

_**The person so much important to her…**_

_**She spoke with trembling voice, **_

_**"Grandfather, how could you leave me alone…**__**"**_

. 

Still thinking of her past, Mikan walked towards the opened window. She stared blankly at the sky above. It's almost sunset. Mikan shut her eyes, unable to hold back her tears any longer. The sundown reminds her of her grandfather…

. 

_**FLASHBACK **:_

_It i__s a beautiful countryside…_

_The air, which is pollution-free, is very breathtaking and refreshing__…_

_From faraway, voice of kids playing happily, and adults laughing jubilantly could be heard…_

_It's indeed a place full of peace and serenity…_

_Among the houses, there was a huge house situated at the top of the hill._

_It was very enchanting. Surrounded with beautiful garden, this house has awed every single person that saw it._

_Despite its enormous size, it was occupied by two mysterious people only._

. 

_In the house…_

.. 

_There was a 6-year-old girl playing joyfully with her puppy, __Shiro__. She was so excited that she did not aware of someone who has been watching her intently._

_"__Mikan-chan__…" the person called._

_The girl stopped running and turned around. Her eyes sparkled at the sight of her grandfather._

_"GRANDPA!"_

_Quickly, she ran at him and hugged him tightly. The old man smiled and patted her back._

. 

_"It's almost dark, Love. You better stop now." He said gently._

_Mikan__ looked down. _

_"But I still want to play with __Shiro__." She protested silently._

_The man knelt in front of her. He pretended to be sad. _

_"So, you would rather spend your time with your pet than with this old man, is it? I see…"_

_Mikan__ looked up suddenly, facing her grandfather._

. 

_"No! I love you, grandpa! More than anyone in this world!" she said loudly._

_The man was touched, and replied, "The same goes to me, my dear…"_

. 

_The two of them sat together, watching the dazzling sunset._

_"Grandpa, I like staying here. Everything is so beautiful here." She said happily._

_"Yes, love. I like it too." He replied softly._

. 

_The cute girl turned to face her grandfather._

_"Then, can we just live here? Forever?" her voice is full of hope._

. 

_Realizing the pain that __Mikan__ has to endure, the old man looked at __Mikan_

_"My dear, you must be tired of running away all this time. I'm sorry…"__ he looked exhausted._

_The girl shook her head vigorously._

. 

_"It's not grandpa's fault. I know you do this for me, to keep me away from them..."_

_Her eyes were teary. The old man watched her granddaughter sadly._

. 

_Meanwhile, __Mikan__ who was in her own world spoke softly._

_"You know, grandpa…__" she started._

_"Sometimes, when I see you sleeping restlessly, looking tired and all…_

_I thought… it would be better for me… _

_to go with them… _

_By doing this, you won't feel tensed anymore…_

_ And you can live the way you want it to be…" she said slowly._

. 

_The old man was shocked to hear the words coming out from a 5-year-old girl's mouth. He gave her a tight embrace._

_"No, dear.__ You do this, I'll be sadder. You do this to me; it'll hurt me more…"_

. 

_Mikan__ sobbed inconsolably._

_"But, who are they, grandpa? What they want from me? I'm just an ordinary girl!"__ she asked desperately._

_He chose not to answer the questions._

. 

_"Someday you'll know, __Mikan__. They just want to use you…_

_ And as long as I'm alive, I'll never let them have you! Never!" he said sternly._

. 

_He looked at __Mikan__ straight in the eyes._

_"My love, promise me something. Promise me that whatever happens, you'll never follow them! __Both sides of them!!!"_

_Mikan__ nodded, assuring her grandfather._

_The old man felt calm again and suppressed a sad smile._

. 

_'__Mikan__ has grown up. Despite her young age, she is becoming more and more mature. _

_Even if I'm gone one day, I'm sure she will manage to survive …'_

_The old man thought._

... _  
_

. . 

_Several years later…_

. 

_An old man was leading a young girl towards the main gate of a prestigious boarding school. When they arrived at the entrance, the man stopped. _

_He knelt down and looked sadly at the girl, who turns 9 that day. Although it was her birthday, she was not happy at all. She was weeping uncontrollably…_

. 

_"Grandpa, why are you leaving me here? Don't you love me anymore?__" her eyes were red._

_"No, dear… I love you very much. But, they are after you. And, they're getting closer now. You'll be safe here." He said slowly, as each word uttered caused him a great pain in the heart._

_"Remember, love… Avoid them. Both groups… And, bear in mind…"_

_He planted a kiss on __Mikan's__ forehead._

. 

_"I love you…"_

. 

_And, he started to walk away from __Mikan__…_

_He gave __Mikan__ a last, hurtful glance before lost from sight…_

_Meanwhile, __Mikan__ was still standing outside of the school, staring blankly at the empty corridor…_

_She couldn't stop crying…_

. 

_"Grandpa… Don't leave me!!!"_

. 

_And…_

_That was the last time she saw her grandfather…_

_No letters, No phone calls…_

_There was no trace of his existence at all…_

_That was the worst birthday present she ever got…_

. 

_And…_

_From that day onwards…_

_Mikan__ Sakura lost her faith in LOVE…_

_She believes that the world is a better place without LOVE…_

_Because…_

_The only LOVE she possesses has gone forever…_

. 

_FLASHBACK ENDS_

. 

"Mikan…"

The grown-up Mikan turned. Her eyes met the worried-looking Leo.

She looked away, tried to conceal her red eyes.

. 

"I'm ok, Leo… Don't worry…"

She tried to sound cheerful, but the only sound that came out is a voice full of misery and despair…

Leo was hurt watching his closest friend acting like this. He approached her and gave her a warm hug.

Mikan failed to control her sadness again. She finally gave up and just let the tears to roll down her rosy-cheek…

"It-won't-stop… The tears…" the brunette sobbed.

. 

He tightened the embrace.

"Thinking of the past, Mikan?" he said softly.

Mikan remained silent, unable to say anything.

"If it's about grandpa… we'll never stop searching and seeking, Mikan. We've come this far, it's impossible for us to retreat now." He convinced her.

. 

Mikan distanced herself from him. She looked at him and suppressed a smirk.

"What for, Leo? What for are we searching for someone who doesn't want to be found?" she sounded disappointed.

. 

Leo was perplexed by Mikan's sudden change.

"Since the day I entered here, I've promised to forget about him, Leo." She said sternly.

The smart boy was startled.

"But, Mikan… Isn't he your loved-"

"I don't believe in love anymore, Leo…" she interrupted, looking away.

. 

"Where's he when I need him the most? Where's he when I'm being punished? Where's he, Leo??? Nowhere…" she expressed her anguish.

"I know him, Mikan…" he tried to defend the old man. "He won't do this without a reason"

. 

However, Mikan refused to listen to any of Leo's word. Her sufferings and pains have turned her deaf.

She shook her head.

"Let's talk about something else, ok?" she suggested.

. 

Leo sighed in disappointment.

'_Mikan__ is a soft-hearted person, but her stubbornness __has overshadowed her __true self…'_

. 

"So, tell me…" She turned to face him.

"How do you find me here?" she tried to change the topic.

. 

Leo, whose thought on Mikan's past decided to let it go for the moment. He looked at her and said thoughtfully…

. 

"Actually, I don't know you're here. A boy gave me a message from someone saying that Mikan Sakura is here, and she needs accompany…"

. 

Mikan's curiousity began to arise.

"Any idea who?" she asked.

Leo shrugged and gave her a sly smile…

. 

"Looks like someone really cares for you, Mikan…"

. 

... _  
_

. 

The winter season that almost approaching its end marked the middle of February.

It was 4 in the morning.

Mikan who was enjoying her sleep was jerked awake by a loud noise beneath her.

She rose from her old bed and sighed softly.

"What the hell…"

She grabbed her night-gown and decided to check the source of the chaos.

. 

As she walking down the stairs towards the ground floor, she realized that every floor seemed to be deserted. Several doors were even left wide open.

The brunette shrugged and made her way downstairs. She was finding the correct direction to the disturbing noise when she saw a commotion of boys outside of the kitchen.

They were whispering and peeping at something.

Mikan looked at them peculiarly. They were watching intently at something inside the kitchen.

. 

Seeing this, a naughty idea popped up in her mind. Mikan smirked.

. 

Quietly, she approached the crowd…

. 

"Ehem…" She cleared her thought loudly.

. 

The boys turned around simultaneously. They were shocked to see Mikan was looking at them, her eye-brows raised.

All of them pointed their fore-fingers towards their mouths, asking Mikan to keep quiet.

Mikan smiled and pretended to open her mouth, as though she wanted to shout.

Shocked by Mikan's sudden reaction, they rushed at her, attempted to shut her mouth.

. 

The beautiful girl retreated and smiled triumphantly.

"Ok... Ok..." She said softly.

"What are you guys doing here?" She asked quietly.

The boys exchanged stares; all of them were surprised.

"Don't you know?" a blonde-haired boy whispered.

Mikan stared at them in confusion.

"Don't I know what?" she whispered back.

. 

The boys stared at her disbelievingly, which left Mikan dumbfounded.

Hate of waiting, she decided to seek the answer herself.

. 

She made her way through the crowd and finally, managed to get a perfect view of what's happening at the kitchen.

The second she peeped through the small hole of the kitchen, she was so surprised. Her eyes were wide in shock.

. 

The enormous kitchen was fully-packed with girls; at all age. They were busy making something.

Some of the girls were stirring something in a large cauldron, while some were reading intently at their own piece of paper; Mikan assumed that as their recipes.

Mikan focused her eyes towards the thing inside the cauldron, and she got the answer in no time.

. 

"Chocolate?" she asked the boys for assurance.

. 

The boys nodded.

"What for?" she asked naively.

Some of them smile at Mikan's innocence.

. 

"My dear… It's Valentine tomorrow!" someone spoke slowly.

Mikan, who was lost at first, finally understood.

. 

"Owh, so this is all about those lovey-dovey thingy". She rolled her eyes.

. 

The brunette shrugged. She regretted waking up from her bed for something this worthless.

She decided to return to her room and started to walk away when a gang of boys stopped her.

. 

Mikan looked at them enquiringly.

"Don't you want to make chocolate too, Miss Sakura?" they asked curiously.

. 

Mikan gave them a small smile.

"I won't waste my time for something useless like this. Talking about me, why are you guys here? Don't tell me you're cooking as well?"

. 

The boys laughed at Mikan's question.

'_She is really sweet',_ some of the Mikan's secret admirers thought.

"Nope… We just come here to watch. It's really interesting watching the girls so preoccupied. But, tomorrow will be the deadliest day for all of us…"

All of them sighed in depression.

. 

Mikan laughed at the sight of their troublesome faces.

"Why? Afraid that they'll put poison in the chocolates?" she teased them.

"Worse…" Koko replied.

. 

Mikan was happy to see someone whom she knew. Being surrounded by boys, she felt a slight discomfort.

. 

"You see… All of the girls here are expert in making love potions." He continued.

"Even one bite of their chocolates, would cause you eternal suffering. Can you imagine, Mikan, being forcefully in love with an ugly, fat girl??"

The boys shivered at the thought of this.

Mikan smiled.

. 

"Oh ya! We were wondering, why don't you know about this huge event?" Mochu was floating on top of the boys.

"But then, of course they won't tell you. You're their biggest rival." Mochu said matter-of-factly, the group of boys beneath him nodded in agreement.

. 

She folded her arms and smirk at them.

"And, why is that?" she asked, knowing the answer.

Mochu landed in front of her and smiled slyly.

. 

"It's said that you and Natsume Hyuuga were seen together. More than half of the girls here were planning their tricks on him. To invite you joining them to make chocolates together, they must be absurd."

. 

Some of them were waiting for Mikan's reply, whether she was really in love with Natsume or not.

Meanwhile, the brunette sniggered.

She shook her head slowly.

. 

"Why on Earth are they thinking that I would do such ridiculous thing…"

Several boys smiled at Mikan's answer. There's still hope for them.

. 

"But, the girls won't have a chance. Every year, Natsume Hyuuga remained as the sole survivor from this Valentine tragedy. The girls always failed to find his whereabouts." Mochu said proudly.

. 

Mikan couldn't care less. " Whateva..."

Mikan turned away and was about to leave the boys when Natsume's words rang in her mind.

. 

_"Everything has a price, stupid! And, yours are going to be eternal hatred from all the girls at the academy. Let's see how you deal with it when we return…"_

. 

_"__I'm __gonna__ make your life here like hell!"_

. 

Mikan clutched her fist tightly, trying to control her anger.

. 

_'__Why am I __keep__ thinking of him these days? I must have loathed him a lot…"_

. 

Suddenly, Mikan stopped walking. A brilliant idea just appeared in her mind. She smiled wickedly.

The boys who were gawping at her were startled when she suddenly turned around.

She approached the boys. In order for her plan to work, these boys should be eliminated first.

. 

"What's up, Sakura?" a boy asked hesitantly

Mikan smiled thoughtfully. She seemed unaffected by the large crowd of boys.

. 

"I was thinking, the girls should have some privacy, you know…"

"Are you asking us to leave, Sakura?" a fat boy asked.

. 

"Y-Yeah… We should go, guys." Koko spoke in a shaky voice.

The boys stared at Koko, who was acting weird. He was sweating badly.

"Hey, Koko-"

"W-We need to be prepared for tomorrow. How are we supposed to escape from the girls if we don't have enough sleep?" he tried to convince them.

The boys who found no reason to argue murmured in agreement and started to return into their bedrooms. Koko, who was last to walk away looked at Mikan.

. 

Mikan gave him a swift nod. She smiled jubilantly.

She let loose of her alice purposely in order to enable Koko to read her mind.

In her mind, she warned Koko to back her up, or not, she is going to reveal his secret to the crowd.

In no time, the commotion has dispersed, leaving her alone by the corridor.

. 

"Guess my plan works", she grinned.

. 

She entered the kitchen confidently despite the danger waiting for her inside. Upon seeing their enemy, the fanatics of Natsume stop their works and approach her. They were knives in their hands.

Mikan just stood there, and smiled. She looked at the girls, without any feeling of terrified.

The weapons were inches from her when she suddenly spoke.

. 

"You'll be searching for Natsume Hyuuga tomorrow, won't you?"

. 

The girls stopped suddenly and eyed her suspiciously.

Mikan folded her arms and smirked.

. 

"I've a perfect solution for you, guys".

.

* * *

**_Mysticlife-fh : Hope you're enjoying yourself here!!!_**

**_Mikan : As for my shrewd plan,, wait for it!_**

**_Anna : Wow! Can't wait for the Valentine's Day!!!_**

**_Nonoko : Yup, and don't forget your comments as well!!!_**

* * *


	13. Valentine's Day PART I

* * *

_**Mysticlife-fh : Well, guys.. I might be late in updating again. But, whatever it is, please **_

_** stick with me!!! Gomeine!!!**_

_**Mikan : Do R & R, ya!!**_

_**Ruka : For your support all this time, ARIGATO!! **_

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.IT'S VALENTINE'S DAY!!!!! 

Mikan woke up with a broad smile on her face. Despite having lack of sleep, Mikan's face looked alive and very refreshing. Somehow, she knew that today will be a spectacular day. It wasn't because of the fact that it's Valentine that excite her, but she just can't wait to take revenge on her deadliest enemy.

. 

_'__Hyuuga, __it's__ showtime__…' _she smirked.

As she was early that morning, Mikan decided to take a walk at the school compound. It was quite windy out there; her long, silky hair brushed gently against her face. She closed her eyes to feel the cool breeze of the morning, but opened at once when she sensed the presence of someone.

. 

"Who's there?" she asked calmly.

As expected, there was no response at all. Despite knowing the result, Mikan still wanted to give it another try.

. 

"Come out, will ya?"

Much to her surprise, something appeared from no where and was moving towards her. The brunette was taken aback and tried to figure out what was the moving 'thing'. It was red in colour, and it was floating as well!!

It took the 'creature' few seconds to reach her. Mikan was so deep in thought that she has no feelings of fear at all. She looked intently at the 'thing', that resembled her favourite cartoon, Casper, a lot.

. 

"You're not a ghost, are you?" she asked slowly.

It smiled at Mikan, answering her question.

Mikan was amazed.

. 

"A ghost at this time of hours..." she said, referring to the broad daylight.

The ghost held out his tiny hand and shoved a packet of marshmallow at Mikan.

It opened its mouth to say something. Considering its size, Mikan expected its voice would be somewhat squeaky.

Instead, a loud, harsh and terrifying voice appeared.

. 

"HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!!!"

. 

Mikan was shocked for a moment before started to laugh. She finally understood.

. 

"Youichii!!! Where are you?" she called happily.

From afar, she could hear someone laughing hardly. The next second, Youichii came out from his hiding. Mikan's face brightened at the sight of him.

He patted his ghost gently, thanking it. The ghost gave Mikan a last smile and disappeared.

. 

"Happy Valentine's Day, Sis!" he said jubilantly.

She was startled being addressed as sister by Youichii, but was touched at the same time.

. 

"Thanx, Little Bro!" she replied.

Mikan offered to take Youchii back to the elementary school, but he refused.

. 

"Don't worry. I'll be fine…" he assured her.

He waved goodbye to her, feeling highly amused as he was the first person to give Valentine's present to Mikan.

. 

Mikan continued her walk. However, once again she's being stopped. But this time, by a high school student.

. 

Judging by his handsome and dashing look, he must be famous among the high school students. Furthermore, with his unusual green eyes and blonde hair, it's impossible for any girl not to fall for him. But, as we know, Mikan Sakura is different from all those girls.

When she first saw him, she could sense the aura of arrogance around him. His good looks did not affect her at all.

. 

"You must be Mikan Sakura…" he started the conversation.

Mikan replied him with a question.

. 

"To whom am I speaking to?" she asked rather stiffly.

He folded his arms.

. 

"Ryuu Hikari. And, if you must know, I'm the most popular guy at High School." He exclaimed proudly.

Mikan rolled her eyes.

. 

'_Looks like my first impression is always correct. An attention-seeker… __Hurmm__…'_

. 

Seeing no response from Mikan, he continued.

"You see, my friend told me there's a new girl named Mikan Sakura at Junior High, who is extremely beautiful and unique. They said that both of us would make a fantastic couple of the year. So, I come here to check you out."

He stopped talking and began to stare hungrily at Mikan; his eyes lingered at Mikan's body.

. 

Mikan narrowed her eyes. She glared at the guy, cursing him under her breath.

. 

_'PERVERT!!__ Do you think that I'm some kind of exhibition???'_

. 

"And, I think…" he continued. "… you're not bad." His eyes fixed at Mikan's body.

. 

Meanwhile, Mikan's loathe towards the guy has overflowed.

_'Seemed like his friends forgot to tell him not to mess with me…'_

Without realizing what will happen next, the arrogant guy kept talking.

. 

"So, listen… I'm telling you once and just once…" he said arrogantly.

. 

He held out a red rose at Mikan, and smiled confidently.

. 

"Receive this rose, and you're my girlfriend."

. 

As he said those words, Mikan could sense something was moving behind those bush near them. And, the guy kept adjusting his hair, as though he was preparing for filming.

'_Filming?'_ Something struck Mikan's mind.

At the corner of her eyes, she could feel the sun being reflected by something behind the bush. As Mikan was a genius, it took her only a few seconds to figure out what's hiding in there.

. 

The guy cleared his throat.

"So, what do you say?"

. 

Mikan perfectly knew how to handle this arrogant, obnoxious guy.

She smiled sweetly at the student.

. 

"Owh, I'd love to be your girlfried!" she said softly.

She held out her hand to take the rose. His eyes glittered in excitement.

. 

Mikan smirked at the sight of his expression.

She stopped abruptly when her hand is an inch away from the flower.

. 

"But…" Mikan started.

. 

Ryuu, who was agitated at first, looked weirdly at Mikan.

"What's the matter?" he asked rather impatiently.

. 

"Aa….. Aaa….." Mikan was facing downwards.

. 

Ryuu was dumbfounded.

"Aaa?? What Aaa??" he asked.

. 

"Aa……. Aa…….. Aaa..." she continued.

. 

Ryuu began to lose his patience.

"WHAT'S THE MATTER WITH YOU? LOOK AT ME!" he nearly shouted.

. 

At that instant, Mikan looked up, facing Ryuu directly. Ryuu's eyes were wide in shock as he saw her face. And, when he realized what will happen, it was too late…. **guys****, breath in….!)**

. 

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAACCCCCCHHHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

. 

There was no way Ryuu could dodge in time. As a result, his entire clean, fair complexion face is being smeared with the product of Mikan's sneeze.

Mikan who was extremely delighted because her plan works tried to conceal her laughter.

. 

"Oh, my… I'm sorry!" she pretended to apologize, while trying hard not to laugh.

. 

As for Ryuu, he took such a long time to recover from his shockness. He just stood there, like a stone, with his eyes widely opened. Watching his surprised expression, it was really priceless for Mikan.

. 

_'Oh, what an accurate aim'._Mikan complimented herself.

. 

Few minutes later, Ryuu regained his consciousness. He remained silent, but took out his handkerchief and began to clean his face.

Mikan pretended to be worried.

. 

"Ryuu, I'm really sorry. I forgot to tell you that I'm allergic to roses." She said in a sad tone.

The guy glared at her, but kept silent.

Mikan did not hesitate to continue talking. Her heart wanted to explode with amusement.

. 

"So… that's mean, that I can neither receive your rose… nor your propose…."

Mikan looked down again, her hair covering her face.

. 

Ryuu was startled by her words. He realized that his plan will fail, but his anger has caused him to become speechless.

. 

"So, listen… I'm telling you once and just once…" she borrowed his lines.

. 

She looked up suddenly. Her face is no longer bearing the sad, depressing expression.

Instead, she was smirking.

. 

"DON'T YOU DARE TO MESS WITH ME ANYMORE… DO IT AGAIN, AND YOU'LL FIND YOURSELF IN WORSE STATE…"

. 

Ryuu was surprised by Mikan's sudden change. He tried to control his anger.

. 

"Y-Y-YOU…DID IT ON PURPOSE…" he said through gritted teeth.

. 

Mikan smiled. Yet, she did not say anything.

"Well, it's such a pleasure meeting you." Mikan bowed her head a little.

She started to walk away from the angry Ryuu.

But then, she stopped and turned to face the dumped guy.

. 

"Oh ya! You should've asked your friend over there to take your 'pretty' face just now. That would make a great publicity, don't you think??" Mikan pointed her finger to the bush that moved previously.

. 

She smiled sweetly and continued her walk to the school.

. 

When Mikan was nowhere in sight, three guys appeared from behind the bush pointed by Mikan just now; all three were as astounded as Ryuu. Two of the guys were holding cameras. They approached Ryuu.

. 

"Who is she really? How does she know we were hiding there?". One of them asked.

Ryuu shrugged.

"Don't know…. But, if she knows you're there, then she must know that we're planning this."

Ryuu sighed.

. 

"SHIT! Now I can't sell my picture with her to the gazette. We've been planning this for months so that I'll be popular again for being coupled with Mikan Sakura. How on Earth am I going to regain my popularity back???"

. 

The three cameramen looked at each other, thinking the same line and looked away to prevent themselves from laughing.

. 

"There's one way, you know!" One of them spoke.

Ryuu looked eagerly at them.

. 

"What?? Tell me!!!!" he asked excitedly.

. 

"HAHAHAHA……!!!!!"

. 

The three remaining guys laughed loudly as their saw Ryuu's expression.

. 

"Sakura is right. Just sell this picture, and you'll gain fame again!"

He showed the 'pretty' picture of Ryuu, his face filled with the product of Mikan's sneeze.

. 

"HAHAHHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAAHAHAHHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAHAHA!!!!!!!!!"

.

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_**Mysticlife-fh : So, how was it??? Please review!!!!!!!!!!!!**_


	14. Valentine's Day PART II

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**_Mysticlife-fh : Well, deepest apologize for my extremely late update.. But, I assure you, every chapters are worth _**

**_the wait! Or, I hope so...! Do tell me what u think! :)_**

**_Mikan Sakura : Uh-hum, I'm back with events you would never predicted!! This ch.. is pretty longer than usual,_**

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.

.

.

"Morning, princess!"

.

Mikan, who was deep in thought looked around when someone hug her shoulder. Her lips formed a small smile when she saw Leo.

"Hey, there…"

.

Leo's eyes wandered to Mikan's empty hands. She was not holding any roses, just like last year, and the year before, and two years before it…

"Still empty, ha..?" he said, his eyes were still on Mikan's hands.

.

Realizing what he meant to say, Mikan just smiled and walk on.

"You know, Mikan… Few roses won't hurt…" he said quietly.

.

Thinking that she can't ignore him any longer, she turned to face him.

"Aren't you tired talking about the same thing every year?"

"Not until you're tired giving me the same answer every year…"

Mikan smiled, "Not in million years…"

Leo returned her smile, "Then, I won't…"

.

The brunette sighed softly.

"You know I don't trust in these love things, Leo…"

"That's because you haven't experience it…" he responded confidently.

She smirked. "And, have you?"

The charming-looking boy replied coolly, "Nope, but I have faith in it"

.

Mikan shrugged.

"Well, I don't. This world is just full of lies, Leo. There is no such thing as true love.Don't you think it's pathetic, claiming that you fall in love with a boy, but instead the thing you fall in love with is either his fame or his look? You're just lying to no one but your own self…"

.

Leo sighed in resignation. Mikan is too stubborn to change her mind,

"Someday, somehow, you'll meet your true love, Mikan…"

The beautiful young lady just smiled at her best friend.

.

"Enough about me… Now, you."

Her eyes were fixed on his, her face wore a serious expression all of a sudden.

.

Mikan move a step backwards.

"Two meters are the closest as you can be near me today…" she said sternly.

.

Leo was totally perplexed.

"What's up?"

"Don't pretend like you don't know, Leo… It's Valentine."

"So?" he raised his eye-brows.

Mikan rolled her eyes. "Behind you…"

.

He turned backwards and saw a group of girls giggling, watching him intently. He smirked at her remark. Every Valentine's Day, he will be surrounded with girls. Mikan, who's always with him, sometimes have to cope with his clingy and annoying fans.

.

"Owh, c'mon Mikan. It's not like you're not familiar with it…" he teased.

"But I never say I like it."

She turned to walk away and said softly, loud enough for him to hear

"A piece of advice. Eat any chocolates given, and you'll feel sorry your whole life…"

.

.

Despite the bell has already rang, the class is almost deserted. Mikan looked around and saw Yuu studying.

"Morning, Yuu.."

He looked up and brightened at the sight of Mikan.

"Morning! It's good to see you here, Mikan… Everybody else were busy about this Valentine thing. I'm left alone…"

"How about you? Don't you want to give presents to the girl you like?" she asked.

.

Yuu blushed and looked down simultaneously. When he talked, his voice sounded different.

"I.. D-D-Don't like anybody…"

.

The brunette smiled as he saw Yuu's red face…

'_Urm… I wonder who does Yuu likes. Well, should I find out?' _the brunette smirked.

.

"Well, you better be hurry, Yuu. Or else, someone might've make a move on her."

The smart boy shook his head and suppressed a small smile.

"They won't succeed, Mikan… She's not that easy"

Mikan shrugged. "You never know, Yuu. Girls do waver at times, you know. Just give a few roses and sweet talks, she might as well give you-"

.

"SUMIRE WON'T DO THAT!!" he blurted out angrily. Then, he popped his mouth with his hands instantly, realizing his mistakes.

.

But, not before Mikan succeeded to catch the name. Her shocked face was slowly, being replaced with a delightful, victory expression.

"So… Sumire ha!" she teased, one of her eye-brows raised.

.

Yuu was brilliant enough to learn the fact that Mikan had purposedly provoke him in order to know about the person he likes.

He looked down, feeling ashamed. "Well, you got me."

.

Mikan hesitated, before voicing out her thought. "But, I don't get it. Why her? I mean, you guys seldom set eyes on each other, let alone talk."

When he looked up, his eyes were glittering. Even his voice has turned drastically into a romantic tone.

.

"She is the cutest, kindest and most polite girl I've ever met…" he said proudly.

.

As the words drifted into her mind, Mikan thought of her encounters with Sumire. She tried to imagine Sumire in the way Yuu described her. But, it simply won't appear. All she could think of is the fierce face of Sumire Shouda, the way she shouted at her, the way she walk- no, stomping, actually…

'_Polite, hah? If Shouda is the most polite girl, then Anna and Nonoko must be angels…'_

She laughed softly at the thought of it.

.

"Don't you think so, Mikan?" Yuu asked, unaware of Mikan's laughter.

.

Mikan gulped.

'_Ok, I'm trapped. I couldn't bear to hurt Yuu by telling the truth. Yet, I couldn't stand hurting my heart by telling lies, either. Think, Mikan… THINK!'_

.

Mikan decided on a safer approach. "Well, whatever my thought is, it's not important. You won't change your mind even the slightest, would you?"

Yuu thought of her words carefully while Mikan was praying hard for him to drop the topic.

.

"Yeah, you're right…" he finally spoke. Mikan exhaled, releasing her worriness.

.

She made her way to her place quickly, avoiding any further conversation with Yuu. She stopped abruptly as she reached there.

"Oh, not again…" she said, her face full of annoyance.

.

On her table, there is a huge pile of roses, chocolates and colourful letters. There are even dozens pictures of boys; shirtless and were posing arrogantly as though they were the most handsome one on Earth.

.

'_What… Am I some kind of pervert that they even think of giving me these pictures?'_

.

Mikan was so deep in thought, she didn't realize of Yuu's existence beside her.

.

"You know, Mikan. You sure have lots of fans. They keep saying that you're like Natsume's female version."

"Hyuuga's female version?" she repeated.

.

Simultaneously, Mikan formed an imaginary figure of Natsume Hyuuga, with his black hairs and crimson eyes.

Except that, this time…

.

His hair were long and straight, and his face were added with eye-shadows and blusher. What's more, he was wearing a crimson-coloured gown to match his eyes!!

.

Mikan shuddered. Even the thought of it make her feels like vomiting. "Yucks!"

"Mikan?"

.

The girl cleared the absurd image and looked directly at Yuu.

"Oh, ya… Yuu, I need to go out for a while. I'll see you later, ok!"

The monitor shouted after her, "What for?"

.

She was halfway the corridor when she shouted back. "Doing something fun!"

.

.

In no time, Mikan reached the school ground. Her eyes wandered around. From afar, she could make out a few familiar faces. Mochu, who possess the alice of flying, made full use of his alice to avoid the girls. He was floating while his fans were running after him. When he saw Mikan, he waved coolly.

"See, Mikan! I'm untouchable." He exclaimed proudly.

.

Mikan smiled at him and turned to watch Kokoroyomi. Unlike Mochu who are being surrounded by girls, Koko was sitting alone by himself, reading manga. A girl approached him quietly, her hands holding large chocolates. She opened her mouth to talk, except that it wasn't her voice who appear.

.

"Koko-kun, I don't like you at all. But, I make bets with my friends-"

.

What types of bets did she make, Mikan never knew. It's because the girl has left after throwing the chocolates right at Koko's face. As Koko was able to read people's mind, he has voice out the girl's thought and see through the real her. The boy seemed to be unaffected by it and continue reading his manga.

.

Mikan smiled. Remembering she has important things to do, she examined her surrounding.

.

"So, where should I go…"

.

The stunning girl closed her eyes, thinking of the best direction to choose. When she opened her eyes seconds later, she looked directly at the Northern Forest. Mikan's lips formed an evil smile as she took out a cute butterfly pin and placed it on her long, blonde hair.

.

"It's showtime…"

.

.

.

At the jungle…

.

The forest was so serene and full of breathtaking views. Birds were flying happily and squirrels were chirping loudly. The big, bushy trees provide shades for the creatures in the forest. And, on one of the branches among thousands of trees, impossible to be detected by anyone, lies a handsome-looking boy who was sleeping peacefully.

.

Well known for being called as 'Black Cat', Natsume Hyuuga was awake as soon as he heard a soft sound near him. It took him almost no time in finding out the source. Still with his eyes closed, he spoke coolly…

.

"What the hell are you doing here?"

.

Mikan, who has just landed swiftly on the tree next to the tree where he sat, smirked at the heard of his voice.

.

"I'll tell when you tell…" she spoke.

.

"Get off!" he said coldly.

.

Mikan ignored his remark, and decided on counter-attack instead.

"Running from girls every Valentine's Day. How pathetic could you be, Hyuuga…?"

.

The raven-haired boy rose and sat on the branch, where he looked directly at Mikan. His eyes bore the aura of coldness and anger towards her.

.

"I, unlike you, never run from people. It's just their brain who're too thin to be able to locate me."

His lips formed a smirk as he spoke, "Talking about running… Is my little present good enough for you, useless girl?"

.

She looked at Natsume with so much hatred she was completely sure there was no one else on Earth would be able to make her feel this way. She thought of his 'so-called little present', of how he made her had to runaway from those freaky fans of him.

.

"I must say, I enjoy it very much, Hyuuga. It was so wonderful that I think it's against my conscience not to repay you…" she said sweetly, in fact, too sweetly.

.

The crimson-eyed bloke eyed his rival suspiciously.

"Don't bother. You're not capable of returning it…"

.

The brunette smiled evilly, "Try me…"

.

It took him just a few seconds for her words to sink in.

Yet, every seconds do count… In that very brief moment, they found themselves being surrounded by majority population of girls in Alice Academy. All of them were holding chocolates and roses, and their eyes were on none other than Natsume Hyuuga.

.

"NATSUME-KUN!!" they were all shrieking histerically for him.

.

Meanwhile, the fire-caster were too shocked to speak. He was besieged from every part of the jungle, that it was almost impossible for him to escape. He quickly divert his attention to the mastermind of the plan, Mikan Sakura.

She was completely enjoying this moment, watching his stunned reaction. Without removing her eyes from him, she reached for the butterfly pin and threw it away. Clearly, it was some kind of bug device to locate her so that when she found his whereabout, the girls would know where to go…

She gave him a last look and winked, "Enjoy! It's my treat!"

.

.

Mikan was hundreds of meters away from the scene when she heard a huge explosion behind her. She stopped, wondering what might Natsume did to escape from the girls. Deciding that there was no point for her to stay in the forest any longer, she proceeded on her walk.

.

Suddenly, someone grabbed her hand from behind and spun her around…

This was beyond her imagination. She did not expect this to be so soon. She had come face to face with…

.

…Natsume Hyuuga.

.

He was staring at her with his cold, crimson eyes. Her hand was clutched so firmly, none too gently, shows that it was unlikely to be released easily.

.

He moved his face closer to hers, until their faces were only inches away. Yet, they maintained their eye-contact. The brunette's confidence wavered a little, seeing they were in such a close proximity. She felt like she couldn't stand to stare at his eyes any longer. Yet, her ego won't just let her to give in.

She looked at him directly in the eyes, fighting his powerful aura, daring him to hurt her.

Instead, he did nothing. His expression was difficult to be described.

.

"Not good enough…"

When he spoke, his voice was slow and surprisingly serene. Gone was the icyness tone.

.

Uncomfortable with the awkwardness, the pretty girl thought hard of a way to escape. But, her mind seemed not to be functioning at the moment. Nevertheless, she would not allow Natsume to think that she had lost.

"Still, it's good enough to freak you out", Mikan said sternly…

…or she thought she did.

.

She could not believe her own ears when she heard her voice, which has turned, all of a sudden, into the sweetest and softest tone she ever heard.

.

Sensing her mistake, Mikan quickly looked away. Her face started to grew hot.

.

The silence surrounded them continued for quite some time before Mikan decided to break the silence. She opened her mouth to talk, but stopped abruptly when she turned and saw his eyes…

.

.

For a split second…

.

His crimson eyes lost his touch of coldness. They were full of kindness and warmness, which melted her heart away. He had never stare at her that way before.

Realizing something weird was happening between them, the brown-eyed girl looked away for the second time. Natsume must had felt the same way because that instant, he released her hand and turned away as well.

.

At that precise moment…

The frenzy fans of Natsume Hyuuga were approaching the spot where they were standing. One of them who possessed the alice of running was leading the run. She was so enthusiastic in coming after the special-star student that she had accidentally bumped Natsume from behind. The impact was so enormous, causing the handsome boy to be driven forward by the force, his hands grabbing Mikan's hands for support.

.

Yes, Hyuuga had successfully avoided falling down. However, the consequences he had to pay was much greater. While struggling in keeping his balance, his hands are not the only thing that stick on Mikan.

.

He had, unintentionally, landed his lips directly on Mikan's cheek!!

.

And, to worsen the situation, the whole crowd of girls had arrived just in time to watch the part where he planted his kiss on Mikan.

.

Mikan's eyes were so wide in shock she had become temporarily speechless. She was blushing so furiously that she did not has the gut to look at the boy in front of him.

.

The commotion, who was frozen by the scene just now recovered their shock and murmurs started to arise.

.

"Did you see it?? Natsume-kun kissed Mikan Sakura..!"

.

"Yeah, they've become couples! Oh, Natsume-kun is already taken!!"

.

Mikan could even hear few girl sobbing hardly, assuming their love life has gone. Aware of the present condition and the girls' thought, the genius became panic and try to fix the situation.

.

"It's- It's not like what you think! We didn't- didn't do anything! Isn't it, Hyuuga?"

She turned to Natsume for backup. He, who was deep in thought regained his consciousness when she called him. His face was expressionless.

.

Mikan looked at him, her eyes pleading for him to help her. But, he simply looked at her. The girls were waiting for his reply. Suddenly, Natsume's lips formed a smirk…

.

At the sight of his evil smile, the brunette began to sense the presence of danger around her.

Able to predict what is going to happen, the girl muttered softly…

.

"Oh, no…"

.

.

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_**Mysticlife-fh : So, how was it?? Keep R&R.. I think, I'd be able to update the 3rd part of Valentine's Day within a **_

_**fortnight's time. To make it up to you for my previous lateness.. Hope u enjoy it!!**_

**_Natsume : What did I do?? Heh, just wait on..._**

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	15. Valentine's Day PART III

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_**Mysticlife-fh : Well, hello there!! We've come to the end of Valentine's Day... Reviews are extremely welcomed!!**_

**_Natsume : What do you think I'll say to that girl? Heh..!_**

**_Mikan : Keep R&R!!_**

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.

.

"Oh no..." Mikan muttered softly.

Still not removing his eyes from Mikan, Natsume opened his mouth to speak.

.

However, something unexpected happened...

"WOW! Look at that!!" shouted a girl, pointing above them.

Simultaneously, the commotion diverted their attention towards the direction shown. They were extremely astonished with what they saw…

.

"WHOA! It's so beautiful!!"

Colourful flowers were falling onto the ground, showering the students. The panorama was so enchanting that they totally forget why they were there. All, except two souls…

Mikan and Natsume were having a glare contest, both too stubborn to remove their eyes from each other.

.

"Psst…! Mikan!!"

A voice appeared from behind the brunette, interrupting the tight battle. Unwillingly, she broke the eye-contact and turned. It was Leo, together with an unknown dark-haired girl. They were signaling for Mikan to escape from the chaos quickly.

Grabbing the opportunity, Mikan made a swift move towards Leo before disappeared few seconds later. But, not before she whispered words to Natsume's ear…

.

"It's not over yet…"

.

.

The triplet ran so fast that by the time they arrived at the school building, they could hardly breathe.

"Fuh… that was close!" Mikan panted.

"Lucky I was there, Mikan…" Leo exclaimed proudly, clutching his chest.

Mikan ignored the boy completely and looked directly at the girl by his side.

"Thanks to you, I was able to escape. You've such a enchanting alice," she smiled.

The girl was amazed by Mikan's quick-witted attitude.

"The ability to control flowers… Well, it's not really useful." She said humbly.

Mikan shrugged at her answer.

"I guess, it's useful enough to help me out just now."

The bright green-eyed girl smiled at her reply.

.

"By the way, I'm Mizuno Suzaku, Leo's classmate."

"I'm Mi-

"Mikan Sakura, right? I know. You're so popular that it seems impossible not to know you."

The brunette tried to ignore her compliment by changing the topic.

"Owh… My stomach is grumbling. Let's have lunch together! Shall we, Leo?"

The good-looking teenager gave his best friend a hurtful look.

"I thought you don't remember I ever exist."

.

.

They almost reach the cafeteria when Mikan sighed.

"Haih… By tomorrow, everyone will start to talk about it."

Surprisingly, she received different reactions from her companions.

Leo's was a worried look. But, Mizuno's… she was smiling.

"Don't underestimate the Gazette. They're pretty diligent, you know… Big scoop like this, it usually comes out pretty quick."

They have finally stepped into the cafeteria, which is packed with students, as usual. What made it unusual today was the fact that they were gathering in large crowd, apparently gossiping about something.

.

And, that's not all….

The moment they entered the café, the place has simultaneously became as silent as a graveyard.

"Although…" Mizuno continued

"…I don't expect it to be THIS fast!"

.

Everyone were looking at Mikan Sakura as though she was suffering from plague.

The pretty girl sighed deeply and walked on to the table nearby. She completely ignored all the stares and glares from the students.

"Is it okay for you?" Mizuno started, feeling concerned.

Mikan who has already started to eat smiled at her new friend. But, before she opened her mouth to reply, Leo has already voiced out her thoughts.

"Whatever it is, she has to face it anyway. There's no point to avoid these people any longer."



The brunette nodded to assure Mizuno that she is fine with it.

.

"But, I'm sorry to drag you into this…" Mikan apologized.

The dark-haired girl waved off the matter and reply simply,

"That's what friends are for…"

.

.

5 minutes later…

.

**DUM!!**

.

The door of the café has been flung open violently. Everyone turned towards the source of the noise and saw a big-sized girl; her eyes are all red and swollen. Her eyes wandered from one student to another, as though she was searching from somebody.

At the sight of the teenager, Mikan gulped.

"I don't know why… But, I feel something bad about this".

Mizuno, who was gaping when she saw the high-school student, replied.

"O-o-of course you should. She's Tazusa Hongori, Vice-President of Natsume's Fan Club for High-School Branch".

.

**DUP! DUP! DUP!**

Mikan's heart started to beat rapidly. Her spirit started to drain away.

.

"D-D-Don't worry. It's not like she's looking for you, Mikan," Leo said, unconvincingly.

How very wrong he was…

.

The moment Tazusa spotted Mikan sitting at the corner of the café, she began to walk towards her.

"Oh, right, Leo. Thanks…" the brunette replied sarcastically.

.

And, now…

The girl whose size is doubled of Mikan was standing right in front of her. She was staring at Mikan with her red, puffy eyes. Clearly, she cried just now.



"You're Mikan Sakura?" she asked, with a high-pitched voice.

For the first time in her life, Mikan dreaded to admit it. She braced herself for the things that was about to happen after this.

"Uh-hum. It's me…" she gulped.

.

Slowly, Tazusa bent towards the brown-haired girl, reducing the distance between them.

.

**DUP! DUP! DUP!**

.

Everyone's attentions were on the two girls. Mikan appeared to be too small compared to the girl.

.

**DUP! DUP! DUP!**

.

She raised her large, beefy hand that's about to strike her any time.

.

**DUP! DUP! DUP!**

.

This was more than what Mikan could take. No matter how brave she was, this was just too much for her. The brunette closed her eyes tightly.

'_In 5 seconds, I'll be slapped for the first time in my life… Hold on, Mikan Sakura! Just hold on, and soon it'll all be over!'_

_5_

_4_

_3_

_2_

_1_

.

**DUP! DUP! DUP!**

.

Mikan expected a slap. But, what she got was…

.

**POKE! POKE!**



She opened her eyes slowly and looked next to her. Leo was the one who poked her cheek just now. He remained speechless but his eyes ordered his best friend to look in front of her.

Slowly, Mikan tilted her head to face her nightmare…

.

.

"KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!"

.

.

The brunette was totally astounded with what she saw that she couldn't stop herself from shouting.

It has never occurred to her that the situation would end up like this. Never…

"W-What are you doing?" Mikan asked, distancing herself from the giant-sized student.

Less than a metre from Mikan Sakura, standing directly in front of her, was Tazusa Hongori.

.

And…

the high school student was…

.

.

.

"BOWING AT YOU??"

"Shuush, Anna. You're too loud!" the brunette whispered.

Mikan, Anna and Nonoko were resting at the school ground, watching the sunset. They were sharing their experience on the Valentine's Day that was just about to end. It was Mikan's turn to tell them her story.

"Yup! And, that's not all!" Mikan added.

"What? Did she say anything to you??" Nonoko asked impatiently.

Mikan smiled, remembering the events that occurred few hours ago.

"She held out her hand and shook mine…"

Both her friends were having drastic transformations of emotion since she began telling them her story. Somehow, it was pretty amusing to see their expressions change from amazed (Mikan putting a prank on Natsume) to horror (the Black Cat caught up to her), to worry (misunderstood from the girls towards her) and the latest is, confused…



.

"HAH! Why, in the name of heaven did she do that?" Anna asked, feeling dazed.

"Then, what did she say?" Nonoko added

.

Mikan cleared her throat and spoke in a high-pitched voice, similar to Tazusa's.

.

"_I'm Tazusa Hongori. Miss President could not make it here as she has fallen sick due to recent event that occurred at the forest just now. So, here I am as the representative. We would like to offer our deepest apologize for causing you troubles all this time. At first, we got the perception that you are the one who flirt intentionally on Natsume."_

The brunette stopped for a while; showing her disgusted feeling at the phrase 'flirt intentionally'.

"_How extremely unfortunate it is for the event to occur just now, which clearly make us realize the real situation that happened. As Natsume Hyuuga's truest and purest fans, we respect his decision and would like to congratulate you for becoming his girlfriend. Although deep in our heart, we loath you, but we decided to sever any hurt feelings and offer you any help if you're in need. All, for the sake of our dearest Natsume…"_

.

.

After finish telling her story, Mikan sighed in desperation.

On the contrary, Nonoko and Anna smiled jubilantly.

"Good for you, Mikan!!" Nonoko patted the girl's back.

"I'm not his girlfriend, ok… That's what I say to the Vice-Pres…" Mikan argued.

"MI-KAN!!" Her closest friends protested.

She smiled sadly.

"Or, that's what I intended to say to her. Leo was fully aware of my intention and stomped on my leg to shut me up just in time. What a friend…" she sighed again.

.

The two faithful friends of Mikan understood her feelings. They tried to cheer her up.

"Look at the bright side, Mikan… There won't be anyone who would mess with you anymore!" Nonoko claimed jubilantly.

Anna nodded in agreement.



"We really envy you, Mikan. In a day, so many things happened to you. But, admit it, Mikan. Regardless whether it's good or bad, it does make your life interesting and full of excitement…"

.

.

.

It was nearly midnight. Mikan Sakura was alone on the rooftop, watching the stars and moon that shone brighter than usual tonight.

She recalled the memorable events she has experienced today, the Valentine's Day. Although everything did not occur as it is planned, it was undeniably a wonderful day.

"Tomorrow is a new day, with a new hope and new experience. Gambateh, Mikan Sakura!!" she shouted happily.

.

"New hope, you say? Do you think that's even possible, Mikan Sakura?"

A husky voice appeared behind her. Sensing danger, the brunette quickly turned around. Her eyes were wide in terror when she saw two familiar features in front of her.

With a smirk on their faces, they approached Mikan slowly…

And, suddenly…

.

**SMACK!!**

.

.

* * *

**_Anna : What?? What has happened?? Mikan, are you ok?_**

**_Nonoko : Who is that, Mikan? Do you know them??_**

**_Natsume : Huh, there's not much about me on this chapter... But, Mysticlife-fh promised me more and more appearances for the next chapters.._**

**_Mysticlife-fh : Do tell me what you think...!  
_**


	16. Alice Restricted Day

* * *

**Mysticlife-fh : Oh, my, god… I can't believe I didn't update for such a long time!!**

**Youichii : Ne-ne, I've heard you're going to stop writing the story…**

**Mysticlife-fh : No way!! Every beginning will have an end. And, so will my fanfic… So, keep **

** Your 'support button' ON!!**

**

* * *

  
**

**SMACK!!!**

"What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"This is not some kind of vacation for you to be acting this STUPID!"

The woman threw the gazette which featured Mikan and Natsume, with the headline :

.

"THE HOTTEST LOVEBIRDS OF ALICE ACADEMY?"

.

Slowly, Mikan tilted her head, looking at the person she once loved and missed. Time has not taken away the natural beauty on her face, but her eyes… they have become so cold and full of hatred; Mikan barely recognized them anymore…

Her companion, who has been watching the earlier scene quietly in the dark started to step forward to greet Mikan.

"Looks like you've finally awaken from your dreams, Sakura,"

The brunette remained silent, only her fiery eyes were responding, clearly showing her deepest grudge against the man.

"Although, I've to admit, it was so brilliant of you to choose the attic to enable you to observe everything that happens around here easily, not to mention, your plan to join the Alice academy's mission in order to remove any suspicions about you…

…but, recently the AAO are very concerned about you. It seems to us, as though you've lost your objective of being here."

"So, that's why we are here, Mikan Sakura..."

The guy approached her closely and whispered to her ear.

"… as a reminder".

She turned to look at the brown-eyed woman, whose blood was running in her veins, whose face she inherited…

With the evil smile on his face, the man loosens his bracelet.

"Let's just take this as a little warning from AAO…"

The instant he touched his fingertip on Mikan's head, the young girl reacted automatically by nullifying his alice.

"Oh, playing games are we? Don't you dare to go against me…"

He increased his power on Mikan Sakura, way beyond the protection she made, thus causing her to receive full impact of his alice. The effects it gave to her mind were so unbearable that Mikan finally passed out.

"…because you're incapable of doing it".

.

.

The next day...

.

.

It was already in the afternoon, and the classroom was occupied by no one but Natsume, who was about to grab his lunch. He stood to leave when his eyes froze at the sight of an empty seat next to him.

.

"_Hey, did any of you see Mikan today? Mr Narumi has been asking for her…"_

"_It's weird, isn't it? She has been missing lessons for the whole morning…"  
_

.

Suddenly, the door of the classroom was opened, and Mikan Sakura entered, her mind seemed to be preoccupied with something. She observed the room, expecting it to be empty. Instead, her eyes met Natsume's. They were so surprised to bump into each other in the class that they become speechless. It took the girl few seconds to recover from her shock.

"Oh, it's you…" her voice so calm and emotionless.

It was obvious for Natsume, considering Mikan's face which was as pale as dead, that something was bothering her. He walked past her, reaching for the door.

.

"Eat something, or someone will be mistaking you for a ghost…"

Mikan turned to look at Natsume, only to find that the he has already gone. Her lips formed a weak smile.

.

Instead of sitting at her own place, Mikan picked a spot near the window. Last night's incident has drained all her energy away. Her mind was totally exhausted, and all she wanted was to close her eyes, wishing all the misery she felt will disappear…

.

"_It seems to us…as though you've lost your objective…"_

"_And that's why we're here, Mikan Sakura… as a reminder"_

.

She was so drown in her own thoughts that she was not aware that the recess time has already ended. Neither did she realize that her classmates were starting to enter the class for the next lesson. Yuu's voice, informing others about the special event that will be held this weekend has barely reached her.

.

"_You've no choice but to complete the mission…"_

"_Remember…. Remember what you'll lose if you fail…"_

"_Remember, Sakura…"_

.

"Sakura! Sakura!!"

Mikan, who nearly dozed off was suddenly awaken by her friend's voices. She opened her eyes slowly and was astounded to see about half of the class members were surrounding her.

"W-What's up?" she asked, feeling a little uneasy. They were smiling at her, yet she could sense there was something fishy in their smiles.

"It's about the 'Alice-Restricted Day'. All of us agree to nominate you as our class representative for the main event."

"It's going to be fun…" Hotaru added, while the rest nodded simultaneously.

Apparently, she acted as the head of the group, replacing Yuu who was standing alone at the corner of the class.

"Is it true, Yuu?" the brunette asked, still feeling a little drowsy.

At the same time, all of the students turned their attention to him. As their backs were facing Mikan, she has no idea that they were all glaring at Yuu, threatening him to go with the plan. The isolated class president backed away, feeling terrified.

"Y-Y-Yeah, Mikan…"

Left with no reason to say no, the brunette eventually agreed to enter the competition.

.

.

The next morning…

.

BAM!!!!!

.

The door of the class was flung opened harshly and Mikan Sakura entered. Everyone became immobilized at the sight of her deadly calm face. They looked at each other, with the same thought across their minds.

'She has already known about it'

She walked naturally across the class; passing Yuu who has already shrank into such a small size (too scared, maybe) and Hotaru, who was wearing metal armor as a protection. A small note was attached to her side, saying:

.

**'WARNING : This armor will repel once assaults towards the attacker back'**

.

On the other hand, Koko, who was trying to read her mind gulped when Mikan glared at her and said quietly,

'Have you lived long enough?'

.

It was almost a full minute before she finally spoke softly,

"It's going to be fun, is it? Perhaps you all forget to mention the fact that every year, all the reps are being sent to the hospital at the end of the day?"

As they heard her words, most of them began to surround Sakura again, apologizing and begging her.

"We're really sorry. But, it's not like we've got any other idea."

"Please, don't back away. We know that the game is dangerous and all. Yet, it's still compulsory for each class to send 2 reps. We're still searching for another one, but no one was brave enough to accept."

"Yes, if you refuse too,…"

Mikan sighed as she saw their desperate faces. On the other hand, Natsume who knew that she has no choice but to join the event smirked. The reaction of his, if possible, made her feel more irritated than ever. Suddenly, an idea popped out of her mind.

"All right, I'll do it. But, in one condition".

She smiled viciously, before pointing at Natsume Hyuuga.

.

"I want him to enter too…"

.

.

"WHAT? You're joining in as well, Leo? Did your classmates use the pleading technique to persuade you too?"

"Nah, they tied me to my chair and forced me to sign the agreement letter"

Mikan Sakura smiled and patted Leo on the back as an encouragement. They were on their way to the Main Ground, where the event will begin.

"Anyway, it's not like they're not involved at all. Now that each rep will be allowed to order the classmates to help on certain occasions, I'm going to make sure that they're involved in this as much as possible…" he said with a smirk on his face.

.

"Hello and good morning to everyone!! As for today's "Alice-Restricted Day", I, Mr Narumi will be the master of ceremony. The main event is about to begin!"

The crowd cheered loudly, excitements were filling the air.

"However, first and foremost, let me brief you on the activities. As you probably have known, the "Cross-Alice Race" event is held separately in three different levels of educations, where the elementary and the middle high students have already done theirs hours ago. And now, it's time for the junior high people!!!!"

"Bear in mind, no one but the reps are allowed to use their alices in the event. It's just like a cross-country race with checkpoints, where you've to fulfill the tasks given there. But, be careful with the hurdles and traps along the way! And now, let the game, BEGIN!!!!!!!!!"

.

**POM!!!!**

.

Natsume, Mikan and Leo led the race, leaving the remaining three contestants far behind. In no time, they have already arrived to the first check point.

"Natsume-kun, Leo-kun and Mikan-chan, welcome to the "Ice-carving Challenge"!! Right in front of you, are six huge blocks of ice. Pick one and touch the surface of the ice you've chosen", explained Mr Narumi.

While the brunette and her best friend were only starting to make their choice, the Black Cat has already placed his hand on the ice block at the furthest left. Suddenly, fireworks popped out of the ice he chosen, forming the word:

.

_Mr. Narumi_

.

"Oh, Natsume-kun got my name!" the MC announced jubilantly. He cleared his throat before telling them what to do.

"Well, in each of the ice block, a teacher's name will appear. The task is simple. You have to carve any animal that symbolizes this particular teacher. He or she then will be the judge to award the reps their deserved marks. Although you're allowed the assistance from your own classmates, the decision of what animal it would be will only be yours".

"And, for your updates, Mikan Sakura and Leo Kusanagi have each chosen Ms Serina and Mr Jinno!!"

.

All the reps are helped by their classmates in fulfilling the first task. Natsume, who easily got an idea of the animal suitable for Mr Narumi told his assistants what to carve, and all of them simultaneously turned to look at him with a shock expression on their faces.

.

"Looks like Kusanagi is the 1st to complete the task! And, the animal that represents Mr Jinno is…

.

**…A FROG!!!"**

.

His announcement is being responded by a loud cheer from the crowd, all supporting Leo.

"And, oh wait! That's not all!! The frog is actually… alive!!"

Everyone turned their attention to the ice frog that was suddenly jumping around. It opened its mouth, and a voice appeared…

.

"BURP!! JINNO… BURP!!"

.

"HAHAHAHA…!! What a splendid show by Leo Kusanagi, who made use of his alice to give life to objects. And, Mr Jinno awarded him with a score of… perfect 10!!"

The viewers were so entertained they gave a huge applause to the handsome boy.

.

"And now, it seems like the other participants are almost done with the first task. I see that Natsume's group is working very hard. Hurm… I'm so eager to know what animal it is… In the meantime, Mikan Sakura has already finished hers, and she too makes an excellent choice of animal, which is…

.

A SWAN!!! And what a beautiful one too!"

That instant, Ms Serina showed a card with a number 9.9 written on it, followed by thunderous claps by the spectators. Other reps apart from Natsume obtained an average of 7 and 8 marks.

.

"AH-HA! Natsume Hyuuga's group has finally completed the task! And the animal that suits me the best is…"

.

**Seconds later…**

"…err… let me see… it looks to me, like a…"

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

.

**And, seconds later…**

"…urm… it does look a bit like a dog… but, it's a bit smaller…. Or, is it?"

Natsume, who was resting and eating ice cream stared at the confused teacher and shook his head. Apparently, everyone else also have no idea what type of animal it is.

"Oh, it's not a dog… Let me try again…"

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...

.

**And, another second later…**

"-Hey! Look at its nose!!" someone shouted among the crowd.

"It's a-"

"-A PIG!!!!" a group of spectators exclaimed loudly. That instant, Mr Narumi dropped his microphone; He was so shocked he did not realize he was gaping at the ice pig.

.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

.

"Oi, Naru…what's my mark?" the fire caster asked in a slumber tone after few minutes of silence.

Narumi was still immobilized with his eyes focused on the little pig; only his mouth was moving, mumbling about something…

.

"Pig… Pig… Pig…"

.

As he was in no position to give marks, all the other teachers behind him instantly showed cards of 10+ to Natsume…

.

.

**2ND Check Point…**

.

"Mr Narumi has been unconscious due to previous event, so I'll be replacing him as the MC", announced Mr. Misaki.

His fan groups then cheered loudly and shouted his name as a support, causing him to blush.

"Right, settle down… settle down… For your information, although there're some reps that have finished earlier in previous task, they still have to wait for all contestants to arrive for the next one. However, extra points will be given to whom that arrived early."

"Ok, in the next challenge, each of the reps will enter a room, and once you enter, you'll be given a piece of paper where you've to dress and become exactly like what's written on the paper. This task is called Alice-

-ALICE COSPLAY!!!" interrupted the recovered Mr Narumi. He smiled sweetly at Mr Misaki, pointing him to his seat. The Biology teacher glared at his colleague in return before passing him the mic.

"I'M BACK, EVERYONE!! All right, you've known the rules. And don't worry; the room is fully equipped with all the clothes and accessories you need. Your classmates are allowed to help as well!!"

.

As the game began, the contestants entered their chosen room, followed by an unusually large commotion of their assistants. However, only a few seconds later, Mikan Sakura stepped out of the room, her arms folded; the same goes with Leo.

.

"Oh, are the two of you already finished?"

.

But, the teacher's question is being answered by loud shrieks from Natsume's room, where tonnes and tonnes of girls, claiming to be his assistants, running out from his place with their clothes on fire.

Then, Natsume appeared with flame in his hands. He said loudly to the shocked Mr Narumi.

.

"Oit! Next time, state your rules clearly!"

Realizing his mistake, the MC announced,

.

"A-A-Alright, everyone. I forget to say that for this task, girl reps will only be helped by girls and so are the boys. So, those who are not involved, please leave the room this instant".

.

In response, dozens of boys and girls appear from Mikan's and Leo's chambers respectively; their expressions are of disappointments and frustrations. Youichii was also seen to come out from Mikan's place.

And the contest proceeded…

.

Meanwhile, in Sakura's room…

"No, I don't think I should wear this…"

"Mikan… we know that you're not accustomed to this outfit, but you'll gain a lot of marks…"

"It's not about that… It's just that it'll be a troublesome later on…"

But, no one seemed to hear her words as they were too busy preparing her.

.

.

"And now, it's time for the Cosplay Show!! For this event only, the judges are the crowds! So, if you're in favour of any reps and think that he/she suits the cosplay given, just cheer out loudly!!"

.

"Ok, first… With the title "Nerd student", let's welcome… Mr Takumi!!!"

And, a boy appeared, wearing a spectacle with a 10cm thickness, his shirt is tucked in. He was holding lots of books on both of his hands…

He impersonated the character as a Nerdy so perfectly that he received quite a warm applauds. The next 2 contestants performed moderately, thus not receiving too much cheering from the people.

.

"I sense the surrounding is getting a bit cold here. Never mind, it's time for the last three reps, who were leading in the previous check point. Representing the character as 'the White-collar', here it comes… LEO Kusanagi!!!"

Seconds later, the smart boy stepped out, wearing a black tuxedo, which fitted his fair skin perfectly. With his dashing appearance, Leo seemed to awe everyone who's watching. And, soon enough, the crowd cheered and shouted his name loudly.

"Wow! Again, Leo made an extravaganza performance!! But, is it good enough to beat Mikan Sakura and Natsume Hyuuga, who are rumoured as the couple of the year?? Let's see…"

.

"And now, is Natsume's turn… His cosplay title is… Well well well…, I think it matches Natsume more than anyone in here… It's 'A ROCK STAR!!!!"

Even before he appeared, everyone were already screaming and shrieking. And, sure enough, he received the loudest cheer the moment he came out.

He was wearing a baggy jean, paired with a black t-shirt. In addition of his aloof expression, his raven hair is altered slightly into cool spikes, which as overall, gave him the image of a Super Rock Star. He was also holding a guitar in his right hand. It was a simple style, yet fitted him perfectly.

It took Mr Narumi a whole minute to calm the spectators who were cheering and applauding the Black Cat.

.

"Alright! Last but not least, please direct your attentions to… MIKAN SAKURA!!!"

The students were all eager to know what will Mikan impersonates, and how will she looks like…

Slowly, she stepped out of her chamber…

.

And all heads were suddenly turned on hers…

.

And…

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**************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************__****Leo : And..?**

**************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************__****Natsume : And…?**

**************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************__****Mikan : And, keep R & R..! **

**************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************__****Mysticlife-fh : And, I'll try my best to update soon, ok!! **

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